A Wrinkle in Time
by rightforlife
Summary: The Fourth Shinobi War ended in disaster. They won, but at a price too great to bear. Given a second chance, what exactly can Konoha's three most powerful men do? No slash, no overt romance. Time travel, old enemies, and old friends that all leads to a new future.
1. The Beginning of an End

**The Fourth Shinobi War ended in disaster. They won, but at a price too great to bear. Given a second chance, what exactly can Konoha's three most powerful men do?  
**

**LALALALA...**Kyuubi speaking

_LALALALA..._People thinking

* * *

Crimson flames licked away at Konoha, leaving ashes in their wake. The twenty-two year old Rokudaime Hokage, and Commander and Chief of the Joint Alliance, Namikaze Naruto stared at his beloved village in agony. It was gone, everyone was gone. There was nothing left. His Konoha had been destroyed, all of the Five Nations lay in ruins.

To his right stood Nara Shikamaru, Jonin, Captain of Tactical Operations, resident genius of the Leaf, and possibly the laziest ninja alive. Calculating eyes dispassionately watched the burning carnage. He lit a cigarette and took a long drag. Not even his customary _troublesome_ came out of Shikamaru's mouth. This was how terrible the situation was.

To the Rokudaime's left, stood Rock Lee, Jonin, and Captain of the Ground Forces, in all of his spandex-clad glory. His onyx eyes shifted from one emotion to the next, before he slowly sank to his knees, tears streaming down his face that had matured over the years giving him a rugged look.

They were the last three left. The war...it had...destroyed _everything._

The civilians were gone. There was no reason to have a Hokage, hell there was no reason to have Shinobi anymore. And what could they do against such an army anyway? The war which had started six years prior had never ended. Sasuke had destroyed everything and everyone that stood in his way...including Sakura. Madara had tried to unleash the Juubi with Obito, and partially succeeded. Naruto shuddered just thinking about what Madara and Obito had done...who they had killed, and what it had taken to restrain them.

It had only been some time back that the village had been weary, but intact.

And yesterday...

Yesterday they had lost 80% of the remaining force to control the rampaging beast. So many had died within seconds, too many more had followed. It had taken Bee's death, and the outpouring of Chakra from the Hachibi to cause a ceasefire. Madara had believed that he would be able to control the Hachibi's chakra, but he had been foolish. Gyuuki's will to protect was far greater than Madara's, which was to destroy. Madara, and Obito to an extent, had been severely wounded, and those wounds destroyed the sustenance of the almost-Juubi.

No one had seen hide or hair of Madara or Obito, not that many were alive to see it. Most likely, they were resting, planning, getting ready to strike again. But strike at what?

Damn the Uchiha Clan!

Hope was gone. There was no way out. They would die, and the masked fiend would win, even if he himself was gone.

Naruto had realized early on in the war that simply barging into war headfirst without an actual plan was not a good idea. It had a taken time, but Naruto had grown out of his childish habits. With Kurama under his control, Naruto was a force to be reckoned with.

Yet everything, everything that they had done was in vain.

Too many people had been sacrificed, and for what; a lost battle? Jiraiya, Itachi, Pein, Konan, Iruka, Kakashi, Sakura, Asuma, Anko, Shizune, Temari, Killer Bee, A, Mei, Darui, Samui, Komui, Karin, Jugo, Suigestu, Konohamaru, Gaara, Kankuro, Baki, Tsunade, Ino, Tenten, Neji, Gai, Kurenai, Shino, Kiba, Hinata, Chouji, everyone.

No one had survived. Everyone they had loved was _gone._ Anko and Yamato were MIA, only to be found KIA after Kabuto was taken care of. What had been done to them...was brutal. It made Naruto want to vomit.

In the midst of Naruto's turbulent mind, one being that transcended heaven and hell raised its regal head. He watched the destruction of the village he himself had once been forced to destroy by the very same man. He sensed his jailor's rage and anguish, and for the first time, the Kyuubi felt compassion. Compassion for Naruto, the people he had lost, and the future.

For more than half of Naruto's life, he had been the pariah of the Leaf Village, all because of him. But then his charge had gained the respect of everyone in the village and become a hero all on his own. And now the hero was on the brink of collapsing. Kyuubi knew that Naruto was going to die either way, and if Naruto died, then so did he. His jailor, possibly the bravest man of his age, would not die such an inglorious death, nor would he die this young. Dying was not something that was in his interest, nor the world's interest. It was not his time, not Naruto's time.

There was only one option left that would insure the survival of not only Naruto and himself, but all the people who had fallen, all the people that Naruto had mourned for.

This was what he could give back to the man who had given him his name again.

**Kit.** Kurama's deep rumble startled Naruto.

_What do you want fox?_ The man's mind was too fatigued for his companion's inevitable ranting.

**Don't give me that tone. Listen carefully, my boy. To you, the future is bleak, a dark void in which you do not want to step foot into. But for me, I can tell that this path that the heavens have laid out for you, this path is not the only path there is to take. You, child, will take the road less traveled by.**The fox said cryptically.

This made Naruto curious. He stood slightly straighter. _Alright my friend. What is it that you're talking about?_

The giant Fox hesitated ever so slightly before answering. However, seeing the spark in his jailor's eyes brought out his resolve. **There's a jutsu, not known to humans, but known to all Biju. It can only be performed once, and at great risk to the being doing it. But for you, and for me, it's our last chance to set things right. No one has ever been so _stupid_ or desperate to try it, but like I said, it's our last chance.  
**

Naruto was almost scared to ask. _What is it? _What could it possibly be?

He heard the Fox inhale and exhale deeply.

**Time Travel. I'll be doing it, but you'll be my conduit. It'll take you back to where this mess began in the first place. **Kurama lazily blinked as Naruto's expression changed from sullen resignation to curiosity, to finally a triumphant visage of desire.

For the first time in what seemed like years, just a sliver of hope surged through Naruto's veins. He had a chance, a chance to change everything, a chance to stop the people he loved from dying! But wait, the _fox_ was proposing this, there had to be some catch. _Why are you doing this? Why do you want to help me? What's in it for you?_

Kurama sighed at Naruto's questions. Of course the kid had the right to be wary of him, he had tried to trick the kid into releasing the seal on a couple occasions. Even if they had made their peace, the kit would not completely trust him, and he shouldn't. Fox's were sly after all. Naruto had aged over time, dropping the naivety that Kurama had said that he had all those years ago. The kit now knew that for every action, there was an equal and opposite reaction. Konoha's destruction was a fine example of such a law.

**Listen kit, you know that you're going to die, or rather, you _want_ to die. But there is still something to live for. The fact is, if you die, then I die, and I don't want that. If you die, then my spirit will reform again, and it will be filled with hatred once more. Now before you say that I'm being selfish or something hear me out. It's not our time. Fate dictates as such. You should have lived to a ripe old age, older than most because of me. You should have had a beautiful wife and many little kits running around the place. This was not your future, not ours. And then when you died, I would have gone on to the next realm, with my brothers and sisters, to the only human that I would call _father - _your ancestor Naruto, the Rikudo Sennin.  
**

Naruto frowned. He had never heard such a soft and _caring_ tone from the fox...ever. _How do you know this?_

Kurama was silent for some moments before he spoke again, his tone oddly soft for an angry sentient being. **Naruto, I am millions o****f years old, older than your Rikudo Sennin. There are some things that cannot be explained...and this is one of them. I have this sense, well actually all the Biju have it but because I am the Nine Tails, and the strongest of the nine, my sense is much stronger than the others. This sense allows me to know things that no one should know, such as the future. Of course, I can't _literally_ see into the future, but i can predict it to an extent. It's one of my gifts as a Biju.  
**

Naruto wanted to scream at the Kitsune for not telling him this sooner, but he did not have the energy to do so. He didn't know how potent this sense was, and if he could have used it to prevent the future. But judging from what Kurama had said before, it seemed as though the fox thought that all wrongs would have righted and Naruto would live the life he was supposed to. Obviously, the future had changed. Naruto exhaled deeply. _What is it that you want me to do?_ He asked resignedly.

Kurama grinned slightly, revealing pointed canines. **The seal for the _Hiraishin_ is a Time-Space seal. The people who think that it is simply a seal for moving at high speeds are fools. Your father was a damn genius, and so is that seal. You are jumping through time for a split second while using it. The design is from an old Uzumaki _fuinjutsu_ technique that your mother gave Namikaze way back when. Your father modified it to fit his needs with your mother's help.  
**

Naruto nodded. He knew this information already. In fact, he had perfected his father's famed jutsu and become a _fuinjutsu_ master just like his father and godfather.

**But this seal can be modified even further, and if it is modified correctly, it becomes something completely different, it becomes, when activated, a portal. This portal, depending on how much chakra you use has the ability to go back in time, it's a black hole if you will. If I use all of my chakra, and you use maybe half of yours, that should be plenty to go back ten years or so, to the time when you were a genin.** The fox paused and reached a giant claw out to Naruto. The cage was unnecessary now. He drew himself to his full height and looked his jailor in the eye.** So tell me Naruto, are you willing to take this risk?**

Saying no wasn't even an option. If he could do it again, then he would. Icy blue eyes glinted with sheer resolve. _I'll do it._

Kurama laughed at the man, his crimson eyes glinting with masked pride. Naruto certainly had come a long way. **Very well then. This is the seal...**

The fox projected the image of a seal that looked very much like the Hiraishin, but with two deviations. Naruto had to admit that this seal was ingenious, yet very very dangerous. There was a seven pronged seal that rested over a thirteen pronged one. Seven and thirteen were the two most difficult numbers to work with in the sealing business. So much could go wrong, and so much could go right. But desperate times called for desperate measures. He had to do this.

The trick to these types of seals was the use of blood. Though using _Ketsueki Fuinjutsu_, or blood sealing, was dangerous, it was infinitely more accurate and precise than simple ink. Using a kunai, Naruto let himself bleed into a vial that appeared from nowhere, waiting until it was full to start.

In his mindscape, the sewer where the Kyuubi resided, Naruto began to work, picturing the Hiraishin seal in front of him. He meticulously worked, tweaking the seal all under the watchful eye of the Kyuubi. On the hologram like image of the seal, he added his blood, using patterns of sevens and thirteens to stabilize and centralize the seal to his own liking. Using his blood didn't mean that if he failed in his goal, then his body would pay the price. For example, assuming that he traveled back in time, and he couldn't stop the wrong that would happen, the _Shinigami_ wouldn't take his soul. However, if something went wrong in the actual creation of the seal, then he would die. There was no question about it.

After what felt like hours, he stopped. Sweat covered his handsome face. "It's done." He told Kurama Said fox took a look at the seal shimmering above the murky waters. **Nice job kit, I guess you truly are your father's son. **

"I thought you hated my father." Naruto deadpanned.

Kurama chuckled. **I did kit, and I still do, but I'm respecting his sealing abilities, not the man he was, or what he did to me...to us.  
**

Naruto shook his head. "So now what?"

**Now, it begins. Brace yourself kit, this is going to hurt. **Kurama closed his eyes and concentrated all of his will into Naruto. _**Namikaze Naruto**,_ Kurama thought as all consciousness left his body, **_You will achieve even greater things in your new life, than you did in this one. Ganbatte, gaki. You're going to need_**_ it._

The giant fox closed his eyes. If anyone looked closely, one could see the barest hint of a smile on the being's face. He too had hope.

* * *

With that done, red volatile chakra that Naruto despised began to seep through the bars that kept Kurama sealed away and into the seal. The rikudo seal glowed red. Naruto was flung into the waters by the immense power that was building in his mind. It was too much. He was forcefully ejected from his mind. The last thing he saw in there was the Kyuubi expelling all of his chakra into Naruto's astral form.

He dropped to his knees much to the surprise of his two companions. They hurried to his side, trying to shake him out of the seemingly agonized state he was in. Had Naruto been injured somehow, and they didn't know about it?

"Naruto! Ruto! What's wrong?" Shikamaru tried to shake him, but his body was rigid. Instead his head snapped up and the two recoiled. Instead of his regular blue, red irises looked back at them. Kyuubi.

"Naruto-kun!" Lee's panicked voice seemingly echoed through his head.

Even through his pain-wracked condition, Naruto could see the two of them clearly. Emotion rushed through him. He couldn't be the only one to go back, he couldn't leave these two in this hell. What they started together would end together. Let them hate him, curse him, whatever. He needed them with him. His mind was set, and no one would deter him.

"I'm sorry. But I have to do this." His voice was harsh and gruff, a low growl. As quick as lightning, he grasped both of their elbows, taking chakra from them in the process.

Before anyone could comprehend what was going on, they vanished in a giant vortex of red and blue light, disappearing from this plane of existence and into the next.

* * *

_Darkness, the North Wind, blowing. Insects, chirping, annoyed probably. The sweet smell of dewy grass. Faint rumblings from the forest around, wild animals looking for food. _

_And then, eyes opened, widened, and gasped. For what those eyes saw was...  
_

_Konoha.  
_

The first thing that Naruto felt as he woke was pain.

The first thing Shikamaru felt as woke was lethargy.

The first thing Lee felt as he woke was bursts of unending energy.

"Ugh." Shikamaru groaned. He tried to sit up, but promptly fell on his back once again.

"My sentiments exactly." Naruto winced. He actually did manage to come to a sitting position, rubbing his eyes, trying to figure out if Kurama's plan had worked, or if he had screwed up royally and dragged his best friends into a new hell for nothing.

"Naruto..." Shikamaru's voice was low as he observed their surroundings. Then his eyes traveled to his friends and a low groan settled in his throat. Kami...or in this case...the Kyuubi, had a really odd way of setting things right, for this...this could only be the Kyuubi's doing. This had to be a joke!

"Naruto-kun!" Lee's voice rattled both Naruto and Shikamau who shot the spandex-clad man dirty looks before their eyes widened as they took in Lee's appearance. Lee had the decency to looks abashed. Yet his expression changed to one of bafflement as soon as he saw where they had...landed.

"Shika...Lee...are we where I think we are?" Naruto asked slowly. Painfully, the blond staggered to his feet, wobbling slightly, but holding his own. Beside him, he felt his two companions do the same.

"The Valley of the End." Shikamaru exhaled slowly, wishing that he had a cigarette. Wait...hadn't this place been destroyed? He stared at the figures of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara with undisguised suspicion before looking back at Naruto with the same expression. "How ironically fitting."

Lee had an uncharacteristically morose expression. "Um..guys, I hate to break this to you but..."

"We look like we're twelve?" Naruto deadpanned, looking at the adolescent versions of his best friends. He winced as he took in the horrendous orange jumpsuit that he was so famous for. "I know."

"What the hell did you do?" Shikamaru asked. There was no hostility in his voice, just resigned acceptance.

"I didn't do anything besides modify a seal." Naruto pointed to his gut. "Kurama did it. He saved the future by saving us."

A moment of silence passed, broken only by the chirping of crickets and the hooting of owls off in the distant night. It was quite a peaceful atmosphere for such a violent present.

"Ten years." Naruto continued, trying to regulate his chakra with breathing. He could feel his nearly inexhaustible energy trying to cope with his teenage body. "We're ten years in the past. Shika and I are twelve, and Lee, you're thirteen."

Shikamaru circled around his friend, stumbling slightly. "So let me get this straight. The fox..._Kurama_, sent us and only us back in the past so that we could play Kami and save the world from imploding." His onyx eyes held Naruto's steady gaze, the gaze of his Hokage, his master.

"Yes." Naruto replied.

Lee watched with trepidation as his best friends engaged in a staring contest, neither blinking, neither moving. All he could do was hope that nobody acted rashly.

"So we can save _everyody?"_ Shikamaru finally asked.

"Only those who are meant to be saved. Temari included." Naruto added the last part quietly, remembering the woman who was the closest thing he had to a sister.

Tears prickled Shikamaru's eyes as he thought of _his_ Temari, his wife, the only woman troublesome enough for him, who had died in his arms along with his unborn child. Could this really be true? Could he have another chance?

"What's the catch?"

Naruto snorted. Of course. As a Nara, it was in Shikamaru's blood to look at all the angles. He didn't know whether to be delighted or concerned when Shikamaru asked the same question that he had asked the fox.

"I have no idea." He replied honestly. "All I know is the that we're back, ten years in the past. Kurama informed me before he performed that we're most likely genin, so this places us all before or after the Chunin exams. And since all of us have our headbands, I can safely say that we are already Ninja. This means that Lee is definitely with Gai, and that Shika and I are on our teams. " At least Naruto wouldn't have to redo the academy again.

"Damn it Ruto!" Shikamaru ground out in frustration. "A little heads up would have been nice! I mean, you grabbed our wrists and literally sucked the chakra from us. I can feel that I don't even have a tenth of what I did just before we left."

"You think it's bad for you?" Naruto scoffed. "Right now, Kurama is probably sleeping. That jutsu drained nearly all of his chakra. Our link is gone for now. I'll estimate that in a month or two, he'll be back and better than ever. But even without his chakra, this body can't handle my adult reserves. If we don't start training, then all of us, Lee, you too, will have mass chakra overloads that will short circuit our bodies and kill us." The seriousness in the Hokage's voice silenced Shikamaru and Lee.

"Naruto-kun." Lee said slowly. "Don't take this the wrong way but, it's very _scary_ to hear you talk so...so..." Lee couldn't find the word he wanted to say.

"So intelligently." Shikamaru finished. "It's kind of hard to believe that Uzumaki...sorry..._Namikaze_ Naruto, the boy who couldn't say _chakra _correctly, ended up fulfilling his dream and becoming the most powerful man since the Rikudo Sennin."

A bitter smile crossed Naruto's face. "If I was so powerful, why couldn't I save them? We won, but they lost." He shook his head, blue eyes looking much older than they should.

"And that's why we're back. You said it yourself, Naruto. We're here to save them." Shikamaru said forcefully, clapping his brother in arms on the shoulder.

"YOSH!" Lee shouted, his voice piercing the stillness of the night. This time, Naruto and Shikamaru just smiled at him. It was nice to hear this side of Lee after so many years. He hadn't been the same since Gai had died. "We will do it! I have faith in us, and Kurama-san!"

All three faces turned to the moon and the stars that twinkled around it. All shining brightly, all mocking them. There was no moon in the future, just a black sky. There was no hope in the future, just darkness.

But now, now they had been given a chance to change everything, a chance to keep that moon there, a chance to keep the world intact.

And no one would be able to stop them from doing so. Not even Kami himself.

* * *

**My first time travel fic:) I know that I haven't updated the other three stories in over a year, but I realized just how immature my writing was. I feel kind of ashamed for them, especially _A Maelstrom's Legacy._ I might continue _The Mistake of a Lifetime_, but the other two are on official hiatus. That being said, if anyone would like to adopt those two stories, please be my guest:) And if you do choose to do so, then please notify me:)**


	2. Homecoming

**I was pleasantly surprised by the response to this. Thanks for the warm comments! I'm glad that you enjoyed Shikamaru and Lee as part of Naruto's companions. In my opinion, they are some of the best characters, and they would really balance out Naruto's personality. Furthermore, the Nara Clan in general is pretty awesome, so they will be featured throughout this story. Think of this chapter as a segue, a transition.  
**

**I apologize for any grammar mistakes I may have overlooked.  
**

** Please enjoy the next installation of _A Wrinkle in Time_.**

* * *

The three of them simply stared at the moon until it disappeared under the cover of the clouds. An unnaturally warm breeze swept through the air. It was like the sweet caress of a mother, soothing and comforting the weary travelers who deserved the warmth more than anyone.

Shikamaru turned to his companions, his fingers pressed against his forehead. "I just want to say this again."

Lee and Naruto stared at him, mentally urging him to go on.

"We're in the _past_. We came from the _future_, and we're in the godforsaken _PAST!"_

"What about the word_s __time travel_ do you not understand?" Naruto deadpanned, wiping his hands on his pants.

"You do realize Naruto, that you have turned the laws of our world completely upside down and backwards!" The Nara plopped onto the ground, trying to stop the impending headache that was growing in the back of his head. "You've made the impossible possible!" He sighed. "How - "

"Troublesome!" Lee piped in cheerily. Though he too was baffled at the sheer enormity of what had just taken place, now was not the time to think about it. They would have _too_ much time later on.

A small smirk was present on Naruto's face. "Well..." He began mischievously, "They don't call me the number one most unpredictable ninja for no reason!"

"You forgot the knucklehead part." Shikamaru scowled before he allowed his lips to twitch upward slight. Unpredictable indeed.

The trio's eyes met, their expressions partially curious, partially awestricken.

And then something unexpected happened.

They laughed.

It was a sound that none of them had heard for a long time, so long, that it sounded foreign to their own ears. But the childish laughter that bubbled out from the pit of their stomachs was like music to their own ears. Their voices, higher pitched due to the adolescent hormones, twined together, creating a marvelous symphony.

Lee wiped away the tears of mirth from his eyes and watched as his best friends clutched their stomachs. At the same time, they fell silent, just observing one another.

They had been given a second chance._ They would right all the wrongs.  
_

"Oi, Ruto." Shikamaru turned to his blonde friend.

"Nani?"

"How much of our power do you think we have?"

It was a valid question, and one that Naruto had the answer to. "Kurama told me that he would use half of my chakra to complete the jutsu to bring us back. But, I drew chakra from you two as well. This means, that I am at about 66% of my _adult_ chakra reserves, and you guys might be at about 80% or so."

"Why don't we feel the drain?" Lee asked. After their initial uncoordinated movements, the three of them had been fine within minutes. This was a serious abnormality. Weren't they supposed to be completely drained of chakra instead of feeling..._fine_.

"You will if you try to use the same techniques as you did all the time...maybe." Naruto answered, a pensive expression on his face. He rubbed his head for a few moment before snapping his fingers as if coming to an epiphany. "Let me try something." He put his hands in the customary two handed seal he was so famous for. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

Immediately, five clones popped out, all of them dressed in the horrible orange jump-suit that Naruto was so proud of. With a snap of the real Naruto's fingers, three clones vanished.

"_Rasengan_." Naruto ordered the remaining two.

The two clones saluted and within seconds, the Yondaime's prized technique was formed.

Seconds later though, the jutsu spread out rapidly, almost like Naruto's _Rasen Shuriken_, and then vanished with a loud _bang_, causing the three to take cover in case it hit them. The real Naruto stumbled slightly, a frown on his face.

"Just as I thought." He muttered. Just as he was about to turn to face his friends, he felt his foot was trapped in something. Looking around, he saw Shikamaru crouched on the ground, his hands in the rat seal. Ah. Naruto was caught in Shikamaru's shadow.

"_Kage Nui_" Shikamaru grunted, watching as his shadows branched into tendrils, one catching Naruto, the other Lee. But then the tendrils crept farther out, until they covered an area that Shikamaru had not set...the entire valley. With some effort, he held it there for at least half a minute before the chakra drain became too much.

Shikamaru straightened and brushed the dirt off of his clothes. "That...sucked." He looked at Naruto with narrowed eyes. "So this means that you can't do the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_ either."

Naruto shook his head with disappointment. "No. I may have perfected tou-chan's jutsu to the point where the tri-prong kunai was almost unnecessary, but in I think, that it's best to hold off on doing that jutsu. Tsunade baa-chan has to give me what tou-chan left to me. I only got his stuff after the war started, and if we are going to win this thing, then I need my inheritance in the next couple years."

They were distracted by a tree crashing to the ground via the courtesy of Lee. The man...boy, came back to the other two with a sullen expression. "I just kicked it..."

"We need to train ourselves." Naruto surmised, chuckling at Lee's pouting face. "Like I said earlier, we still have our adult reserves which are at least ten times bigger than what we had as kids. Now that we are kids, our bodies don't know what to do with the excess chakra which is why we can't control the techniques that are like second nature to us. Plus this training will ensure that I'm not a runt." He added the last part in an undertone, lamenting as he looked over his skinny and underdeveloped body.

"We are truly doomed if training is not done properly." Lee wailed, pointing to the downed tree. "Now, that I am over the shock of Time travel and the initial pain of my body, I feel overly energetic!"

Naruto nodded grimly. "What we need is conditioning. Mental and physical. Our Chakra circuits are haywire right now. Until everything's regulated, we're going to be on chakra surges."

"Like a sugar rush, but worse." Shikamaru grumbled. "I understand now. Without control, we could kill everything in our paths." _Even Madara, _Shikamaru thought morbidly before hastily dispelling the wayward idea. It would be suicide to take on Madara, if they could even find him, with the power he had now.

"YOSH!" Lee exclaimed exuberantly. "Now we can do even more rigorous training! I truly cannot wait!" Inwardly, Lee grinned at the pained faces that his friends' had. They were in for the training of a lifetime...

Naruto and Shikamaru groaned simultaneously before all three burst into laughter once again. Oh Kami. Lee was going to be a nightmare. But they had to train in order to gain more power, there were no two ways about it.

Speaking of power...

"Sasuke..." Naruto muttered the name with disgust, effectively eliminating the cheerful atmosphere. Cerulean eyes stared at the shadowy outlines of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara. How ironic was it that he and Sasuke had once fought in this same place? Sasuke, descendent of Uchiha Madara, versus Naruto, relative of the Senju Clan.

It was Senju vs. Uchiha all over again, just a new generation and new tribulations. Hell, just like in the original fight, the Kyuubi was involved as well. History had a bad way of repeating itself.

"Will you try and save him?" Lee asked quietly.

"Save him?" Naruto scoffed, much to the surprise of the other two. "Save that asshole? He's beyond saving." Though he had promised Itachi that he would bring back Sasuke, it just couldn't be done, not with all that Sasuke had done, who he had killed to achieve his ultimate goal.

Shikamaru assessed his friend with calculating eyes. No one ever knew when Naruto had stopped thinking that he could bring Sasuke back and when he had started calling the Uchiha his enemy. During the war, there had come a point where Naruto was dealt with harsh truths. When Neji died, the first out of their friends, that was when Shikamaru had first seen the shadow of the Naruto to come.

He was pretty sure that was when Naruto had his first coldblooded kill as well.

Neji's death had pushed Naruto to the limit. That was when Naruto had realized that even though he was one of the most powerful people on the battlefield, it wasn't enough.

Shikamaru had seen what a ruthless Naruto could do, and he had seen how unforgiving his best friend was when it came to people hurting his friends. The glint in Naruto's eyes as he took down his enemies one by one...it was truly bone-chilling.

"How do you know Ruto, how do you know that Sasuke is beyond redemption? After all, he's just a kid at the moment. Why can't we stop him?" Shikamaru prodded gently.

The scowl on Naruto's face deepened, his face masked by shadows. "I just do, okay? A long time ago, before I knew Kurama's name, he told me that Sasuke was consumed with hatred from the beginning. And he told me that I knew this as well. The fox was right. Sasuke has been hell bent on killing Itachi since the massacre. Even after he knew the truth of his clan's death, he still wanted to destroy us. I..."Naruto faltered slightly as the weight of old memories haunted him. "I can't let my so called brotherly-love for him cloud my judgement again."

The man turned boy let out a deep breath. "Jiraiya-Sensei, Tsunade baa-chan, everyone except for Sakura who was in love with the _teme_, you all told me that Sasuke was lost cause and that I shouldn't waste my time on him. But I didn't listen because I was so _stubborn_. I thought I could change him. That was my naivety speaking." He grabbed a fistful of grass and tore it from its roots.

"I was a damned fool." Naruto closed his eyes and tilted his head to the heavens, a gesture of surrender.

His friends looked at him with a combination of surprise and pity, though they knew Naruto hated pity.

_Those eyes_, Lee thought somberly, _those wary eyes don't belong on the face of a twelve year old. I'm sure that if I looked in a mirror, my eyes would look exactly like Naruto's, Shikamaru's too._

"We've changed." Lee mused out loud. "Perhaps too much."

No one so much as blinked at the tone in Lee's voice. It was the truth. After Shikaku's death, Shikamaru's laziness had pretty much disappeared. After Temari's death which included his unborn child, Nara Shikamaru was the embodiment of his clan. A shadow. He was his enemy's worst nightmare, striking from the darkness with frightening efficiency.

Lee had changed as well. Almost as much as Naruto. Gai had died a year after the war began, taken down while fighting Kabuto himself. And then Kabuto had used Gai's mutilated corpse to wreak panic throughout the alliance, killing TenTen in the process, leaving Lee as the sole member of Team Gai. The last words that the reanimated man had said to his favorite student were: _I'm proud of you_. This was right before Lee had pierced a kunai into his sensei's already dead heart.

In light of Gai's death, Lee had gone into a frenzy, which had given him the monicker _Konoha no Midori Kemono_ - Konoha's Green Beast, just like Gai. Afterwards, Lee was so ashamed of the carnage he had caused, it took the combined efforts of Naruto and Kakashi to coax him out of his stupor.

"You're right." Naruto murmured. "We have changed. People are going to notice. I don't think that any of us can act as we did ten years ago. I certainly can't pretend to be the _dobe_ I was. Shika, you can't go back to being the lazy bastard that you were. And Lee, I haven't heard you so much as whisper YOUTH since the war began. We've been through too much to even act. That would look even more unnatural."

The wind picked up again, this time, considerably colder, as if telling them to get a move on. They shivered, perhaps noticing for the first time that it was night time.

"I don't want to leave you two alone." Shikamaru said suddenly. "Not tonight." He added in a softer voice.

Lee's eyes widened while Naruto sighed ruefully. Both Lee and Naruto were orphans. They lived alone with no one's protection besides the Sandaime who didn't check up on all the orphans living alone on a daily basis. They understood that in his own way, Shikamaru was trying to make them feel a bit less alone after coming back ten years in the past. Six years of war, and not a single night of decent sleep, it was the least he could do to offer them a nice bed to sleep in and friends that they could talk to.

But Naruto's smile vanished when he remembered what time they were in. This was before he had gained the respect of the village. They still hated him. Would the Nara Clan even allow him to be there?

"Shika...I..."

"Oh hell no!" The Nara yelled before Naruto could say anything else. "You're not going to pull the _I won't be welcome_ bullshit, not now! Damn it Ruto! You're _family_! Like hell if I'm going to let you go to that ratty old apartment of yours."

"But - "

"Naruto-kun." Naruto was cut off a second time, this time by Lee. "Shikamaru-kun is correct. Tonight, I do not want to be alone. And deep down, neither do you. So please, don't argue. Plus, the Nara Clan is comprised of the most intelligent people in Konoha. They know that you are not what you jail."

Naruto looked at Lee and Shikamaru's impassive faces before sighing dramatically. He knew Lee was right. "Fine." The grin was back. "One night wouldn't hurt."

"Now!" Naruto rubbed his hands gleefully, much to the fear of his friends. "Let's see if I can still pull off a _shushin_!"

And without letting the other two say another word, Naruto grabbed their wrists, all three of them vanishing a swirl of leaves.

* * *

"It worked!" Naruto said in disbelief as he stared at the Nara complex in front of him. "It actually worked!"

Shikamaru stared at Naruto with an incredulous expression. "You mean to say that you didn't know if it would work or not? You could have killed us!"

Lee chuckled at Naruto's sheepish expression and Shikamaru's furious one.

The Nara shook his head and stared back at his home. The very home that had been destroyed in the past..wait...now it was the future. _Time travel is so troublesome_, he though with a sigh.

Looking at his home cemented the reality of it all. Naruto had actually brought them to the past, where his clan was still thriving, where there were still deer to tend, where he would play shogi with his dad and Asuma.

Dad and Asuma. Shikamaru swallowed the lump in his throat as he thought about the two men. His dad had died while telling him to be strong, to be brave, that he loved him. The younger Nara had told Shikaku how good of a father he was, how he wished he had more time with him.

And now...he could do it again. Hopefully this time, his dad wouldn't die, maybe Asuma wouldn't die. Shikamaru knew that some things were meant to happen though, and he knew that Naruto knew this as well. A war was coming. They couldn't stop the war, but they could be better prepared, have more allies earlier on. Some people were going to die, there were some that they couldn't save. But more importantly, there were those that they could. And that's who they would concentrate on.

Behind him, Naruto and Lee were silently appraising their dark haired friend.

"He'll be alright." Lee said confidently. "We all will be."

Naruto kept his eyes on Shikamaru, wondering how the Nara would react. He certainly wouldn't know what to do if the Yondaime appeared before him after years of death.

Shikamaru turned to the other two who gave him silent nods of approval. With a deep breath, Shikamaru raised his hand and knocked on the huge door.

Trepidation filled him as he waited for the doors to open, for his mother or father to greet him.

Slowly, ever so slowly, the three of them could hear the unhurried footsteps of someone coming to the door. Shikamaru held his breath as the doors slid open to reveal the scarred face of Nara Shikaku. He looked younger, more relaxed. War had aged everyone passed their actual ages.

Naruto and Lee saw Shikamaru tense before relaxing. They knew how hard it must be for him to see his father after six long years.

"Shika?" The elder Nara raised an eyebrow at his silent son, before taking a look at the boy's companions, both eyebrows raised high by now.

"_Oyaji_." It took all of Shikamaru's willpower to not throw himself in his dad's arms. He felt his eyes tear up ever so slightly, blinking rapidly to keep his emotions under control. It didn't matter that he had the mindset of a twenty-two year old. This was his _dad_!

Lee poked Shikamaru's back discretely causing the young Nara to jump slightly. "O-Oyaji." He cleared his throat. "I know it's late, but I was wondering if my friends," He gestured at Naruto and Lee, "could sleep here tonight."

Shikaku glanced at his only child for a long moment, wondering why his son was out this late, and why he wanted to bring friends over. Not even Chouji had been over to spend the night, Shikamaru usually went over to the Akimichi's. And these friends of his son...

The Kyuubi host and the _nidaime Gai_.

Since when did Shikamaru know those two well enough to bring them to the clan home?

Shikaku would have prodded more, but he saw the three of them shiver in the cold. He also saw the undisguised fear in the smallest boy's eyes. That didn't sit right with Shikaku at all. He knew who Naruto was of course. The jailor of the Kyuubi. And the Yondaime's son. You would have to be blind to not make the connection after all.

But that fear...it was that of rejection...and something else. It was the expression of a boy who thought he was going to be attacked...

"Come in you three." Shikaku stepped aside, watching as the odd trio hobbled into the house. What was even odder was the way they came in. His son and the other kid flanked Naruto. They _flanked_ him. Like they were guarding him.

Shikaku narrowed his eyes but said nothing when they took their shoes off and kept them in the proper space. His son turned to him, as did the other two. There was something in his kid's eyes that he couldn't quite place. Something different. Actually, all of those three kids had that same _thing_ in their eyes. It looked like...weariness. Those eyes, especially the ones on Naruto, how very strange... They looked like the eyes of those who had experienced many battles.

What could have happened to make these kids have those eyes? Had he been that bad of a parent that he hadn't seen this shift in his own son?

It was then that he saw Naruto take in a sharp breath as the boy placed a hand on Shikamaru's shoulder.

"_Sugoi_." The child murmured quietly.

"What?" Shikamaru asked as he watched Naruto examine his home.

"The chakra in your house...it's beautiful." Naruto was surprised that he still had the ability to detect chakra. He thought that he would have to hone this skill again, but it seemed as though it was still there. The Uzumaki Clan, like Mito-sama, and Karin, were Chakra sensors. His mother didn't have this ability, though her special chakra was tied to _controlling_ chakra such as the Kyuubi's, as opposed to reading it. In the future, Naruto was able to read a person's chakra even without being shrouded in Kurama's Chakra.

Now that...that threw Shikaku severely off balance. This kid could sense the chakra in his house? What chakra? He had never felt any chakra in this house.

"Can you explain that sentence, young man?" Shikaku asked Naruto.

Naruto jumped, forgetting that Shikamaru's father was still here. How could he be so stupid as to let something like that slip? They weren't even back for a couple hours and he was already screwing things up! He really was a _dobe._

"Um...well...It's just that everyone has their own unique chakra right? And the Nara Clan, well you have your own special chakra within the uniqueness of individual chakra, so that energy is reflected within your home."

Shikaku was still puzzled. For all his genius, he wasn't understanding what the boy was talking about. "I don't see what this has to do with you sensing the chakra in my home."

The boy twiddled his thumbs and looked to Shikamaru for support. His son, much to Shikaku's amusement, was looking at Naruto with an expectant expression.

"Traitor." He heard Naruto grumble before the kid took another deep breath. "I...I just mean that because your clan uses the same type of techniques, and even since everyone is related, the chakra is similar therefor the chakra resonates here. It's nearly palpable. It creates this warm feeling that covers you. It makes someone feel safe, protected even. That's why I said it was beautiful." Naruto stopped, and looked at the man in an almost expectant manor.

Shikaku scrutinized Naruto thoroughly. Resonates? Palpable? From what he had heard of the kid, Naruto was supposed to be a complete dunce with no skill at all besides creating shadow clones and having too much chakra. But here he was, _sensing_ the chakra in his home, chakra which he didn't know about, and using vocabulary that he shouldn't have to explain it. This made Shikaku wonder: how much stuff about the child was true, and how much was made up?

"Interesting." He finally said, stifling a chuckle when Naruto let out a breath of relief. "You must tell me more about this later. But for now, Shikamaru can take you to his room and someone will bring you three food."

"C'mon." Shikamaru dragged his friends to his room after throwing a quick goodbye to his father. Shikaku saw how Lee and Naruto's shoulders slumped in a casual sort of manor, how Shikamaru smirked at the two of them and threw an arm around Naruto in a brotherly fashion, how Lee gazed at the two fondly before shaking his head. This level of comfort wasn't something developed overnight, no, this camaraderie took years to build. This was yet another mystery that he was determined to solve.

As he watched them leave, Shikaku felt Yoshino come next to him.

"So that's him, huh? Uzumaki Naruto."

"Namikaze Naruto." Shikaku absently corrected her.

His wife smiled next to him. "Ah, he's more Uzumaki I think. He's Kushina's kid alright. I've heard him around the village after he's sent the TI department on a goose chase. _Dattebayo _this and _dattebayo _that. It's exactly like Kushina's _dattebane!_"

"Did you hear what he said?"

"Of course." Yoshino replied. "Smart kid, and talented too. I learned something today about my own clan." She paused momentarily before continuing. "He's a sensory type."

"Did Shikamaru ever mention being friends with him?"

Yoshino shook her head. "No, not with him, or the other one." She glanced at her husband. "You're not going to interrogate him, are you?"

"No." _Not yet_. He added to himself. "Shikamaru will tell us when he wants to. But in the meantime, we have three growing teens in our home. I think that they need to be fed."

Yoshino's face changed immediately causing Shikaku to take two steps back. Now what had he said?

"Are you insinuating," His wife started dangerously, "That _I_ will be the one to feed them? That women should only be in the kitchen? You insensitive, misogynistic, bas-"

"Not at all dear!" Shikaku hurried to rectify the situation, knowing his wife's temper was incredibly volatile. "In fact! Why don't I give them something? Yes, I'll do that! You go to bed!"

Yoshino watched with a smirk as her husband scurried away. _Works every time_.

* * *

In the safety of Shikamaru's room, the trio began analyzing everything.

Firstly, based on the calendar, they concluded that it had been approximately two months since Shikamaru and Naruto had become genin. This meant that the famous _Journey to Wave_ mission had already taken place. It also meant, that in another month or so, all three rookie teams plus Team Gai would be entered into the Chunin Exams.

"Listen guys," Shikamaru spewing out random ideas. "The reason Orochimaru got to Sasuke was because he was disguised as a kunoichi right?"

Naruto nodded, not sure where this was going.

"So what if we weren't in the Chunin exams? What if our senseis decided we weren't ready?"

Lee shook his head sadly. "Shikamaru-kun, that won't work. If Orochimaru doesn't find Sasuke in the Forest of Death, then he will another way, and that other way will be much worse I fear. We must change things, I agree with that, but if we are not entered into the Chunin exams, then the change will be too drastic."

"Lee's right." Naruto spoke. "Orochimaru wants Sasuke more than anything. But all Sasuke wanted from him was power. Even if Orochimaru doesn't put his seal on him, then he'll lure him out of the village with the promise of power. And knowing the _teme_, he'll leave. In the long run, Sasuke kills Orochimaru. I don't know if we can stop Sasuke from leaving the village, but we must try."

"But most likely, you're saying that Sasuke will defect." Shikamaru concluded. Naruto's grim expression said it all. "Damn Uchiha."

That pretty much summed up everyone's view of that cursed Clan.

Naruto leaned against the wall. This day had been long. From watching Konoha burn, to coming to the past, to being here in this room. It felt surreal.

"Naruto-kun!" Lee jumped up suddenly.

"Nani?"

"You could do Rasengan!"

"I know. Not well though." Naruto sighed with disappointment.

Lee shook his head in excitement. "No, I mean that even before you would learn it in the original time line, you knew it! This means that we've retained the knowledge of what our future selves can do, and even how to do it. All we need now is the control and stamina to do it, just as you said!"

Shikamaru's eyes lit up, as did Naruto's.

"That means I could still summon..." Naruto trailed off excitedly. Summoning was not bound by time and space. His toads would still believe him to be the Naruto of the future. But if he tried it, he might end up summoning Gamabunta and he wouldn't be able to explain their presence in Konoha without revealing the truth about himself and his two companions.

"Oh thank Kami!" Shikamaru sighed, letting himself fall on his bed.

"But we still have much work to do to catch up to our future selves." Naruto added seriously. "I highly doubt I could pull off a summoning jutsu right now."

Shikamaru threw a pillow at him. "Way to be a downer."

Naruto just smirked. "Hey, I'm a realist. I was since the day I screamed that I would be Hokage. I knew it would happen."

"I still can't believe that." Shikamaru muttered. "A loud mouth like you became the most powerful person in our village, hell, maybe even the five nations."

"Except for Madara and Obito." Naruto said bitterly, echoing what he had said some time back in the Valley.

"It is absolutely unthinkable and unimaginable that Kakashi-sensei's old friend, the one for whom he went to the memorial for every day was the one who released the Kyuubi and destroyed Konoha...twice!" Lee griped.

"You should have seen him when Obito revealed himself." Naruto said sadly. "I think he believed that it was his fault this had all happened. He took that guilt to the grave."

"But we will change this. Change it all." Lee stated firmly.

"Yes, yes we will." Shikamaru reaffirmed, yawning loudly, realizing just how tired he was both mentally and physically. "This has been a very troublesome day. I'm beat."

"We all are." Naruto groaned as he stretched. "But tomorrow, tomorrow will be even more troublesome. So prepare yourselves." Naruto the brat was replaced with Naruto the Hokage causing Shikamaru and Lee to sit a bit straighter out of habit.

"Rest up guys. We're going to need it."

* * *

When Shikaku came to knock on the door to deliver food, he was greeted with the sight of three sleeping children, each of them curled up into small balls, a content expression on each of their faces.

He looked at the food in his hand and back at them, a rueful smile on his face. Though he was tempted to wake them, he let them sleep. They could eat tomorrow.

As he left the room, he saw Yoshino snap a picture of the three sleeping boy's, neither of them knowing that this was the most sleep they had gotten in six years, not knowing that tonight, in this room, a major shift had just taken place.

Right here, slept the future leaders of Konoha.

And right here, the future of Konoha had just been altered.

* * *

"Wake up!"

Shikamaru was woken up by someone yelling in his ear.

"Leavemealone." He slurred, shutting off all the noise by placing a pillow over his head.

"Shika!" A new voice joined in his torture.

"Go away!"

Naruto and Lee grinned at each other. Their lazy friend was living up to his clan's reputation. Unbeknownst to them, Shikaku, who had heard the commotion and wondered why the kids would be up at six o'clock opened the door and was watching what was going on with amused eyes.

"Awaken young grasshopper!" Lee flashed a smile worthy Gai at the still sleeping Nara.

"Shut up Sensei." Shikamaru's voice was muffled under the blankets and pillows.

It was amazing to Shikaku how much the expression on Naruto's face resembled Kushina's whenever she had pulled a prank on Minato or Jiraiya.

"Shika, wake up or Lee will unleash the Springtime of Youth on you!"

Shikaku wondered just how well Naruto knew his son for his son to allow the other boy to call him _Shika_. Not even Chouji called him that. He had no idea that under his lazy exterior, Shikamaru had a mysterious side.

"Naruto-kun." Lee began in a grave tone. "I fear that you must use _it_."

"Yes." Naruto replied in the same tone. "I must use _it._" The look he gave Shikamaru was not a pleasant one at all. "Forgive me my friend, but you leave me no other choice."

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu._" Naruto intoned grimly. What he was about to do did not match the tone of his voice. Silently, fourteen clones popped into existence before Naruto looked at them in exasperation and dispelled all but one. Much to Shikaku's pleasure and amusement, the clone was an exact replica of Yoshino.

"Let's go Lee."

Shikaku quickly moved away so the two boys wouldn't see him. He noted the downright wicked expressions they wore and decided he must see what was going to happen.

Immediately, the transformed clone started hitting the poor boy who was rattled out of his senses.

Shikaku closed the door when the yelling began, a smile on his face. He would have to try Naruto's trick the next time Shikamaru didn't wake up.

* * *

"I hate you both." A battered Shikamaru mumbled as he plopped down next to his best friends who were eating breakfast prepared by Yoshino who had been told what had happened by a mirthful Shikaku.

"You could've just woken up." Naruto pointed out. "Then we wouldn't have had to do that. It was either that, or Lee showing you the _Springtime of Youth_."

Both boys looked to their spandex clad friend who flashed them a bright smile. They shuddered, thinking of crashing waves and sunsets that appeared out of no where. Naruto's wake up was much better than Lee's would have been.

"I'm curious though Naruto-San," Shikaku spoke from across the table. The smile that had been on the boy's face vanished instantaneously, and was replaced by a look of wariness. Interesting and disturbing. He knew the kid had led a hard life, but this was the behavior of a person who was constantly watching for danger wherever he was. No twelve year-old should behave this way. He would have to have a talk with the Hokage.

"Yes, Nara-sama?" Using the formal suffix was best whilst talking to a Clan Head, but the Ino-Shika-Cho heads were a bit different.

As expected, Shikaku waved his hand. "Come now, none of that _Sama_ stuff. Just Shikaku or whatever is fine. Why are you boys waking up so early?"

Yoshino paused in what she was doing and watched as the trio exchanged slightly melancholic looks. What in the world...?

"It's not early, Shikaku-sam...Shikaku-san." Lee said. "We just didn't want to be late for training."

"Not training with our senseis," Naruto added hurriedly, seeing the suspicious looks on the elder Nara's face, "Training with just us. See, the three of us wanted to improve, and there's strength in numbers right? So we decided to train together. That way, we would get feedback and encouragement from each other!"

Shikaku nodded slowly, not quite believing them, but that story was plausible. It did explain the friendship, but certainly not the deep seated trust that these three had in each other. The way they acted was betraying the true nature of this friendship It was highly noticeable by the way they threw glances around, the way they communicated non-verbally, the wake up call in the morning, all of these things were clues that they had known each other for far longer than they were letting on.

Naruto rose from his seat, the other two following quickly. Once again, there was this feeling that Shikaku had that told him that Naruto was the leader in this group. Judging by the way his wife raised her eyebrows, she thought so as well.

"Thank you for the meal, Yoshino-san. It was delicious. And thank you for letting us stay." He bowed to her, as did Lee. Naruto truly meant what he said. The war didn't allow them to eat properly, sleep properly, or enjoy life in general. Sleeping for this long was a luxury.

"It wasn't a problem." She said, her voice slightly shaky. Kushina's child, _Minato's_ child, the one she had never checked on, was bowing to her for something she didn't deserve.

"Ja-ne, Kaa-san, Oyaji." Shikamaru said quietly, leaving the room with Naruto and Lee in tow. The last two turned and waved to their elders before catching up to Shikamaru.

* * *

"Now that's something you don't see everyday." Yoshino remarked quietly. She picked up the photo she had snapped yesterday of the boys and pasted it carefully to the fridge.

"He's changed. Shikamaru has changed quite a bit."

"He didn't even say _mendoukse _at all!" The Nara matriarch looked to her husband. "Do you believe them, when they say that they started training together?"

"Yes and no. I'm not sure what, but those kids are definitely hiding something."

"But what?" Yoshino questioned with a sigh. "What's going on?"

Shikaku entwined his fingers and rested them under his chin. "I don't know, but I intend to find out."

"Do you think the boy knows? About his...burden. And if so, could he have told Shikamaru and Lee-kun?"

"It's possible. But let's not make assumptions just yet." Shikaku stood and stretched. "Let's just wait and see."

From the distance, he could see the sun shining brightly. A small smile played on his face.

It was the dawn of a new day.

* * *

Training field ten was completely destroyed.

In the middle, lay three teens, panting and thoroughly worn to the ground.

It was just past eight, and their training/torture had been going on for about two hours. They knew that their chakra control was pretty bad when neither of them could climb a tree without blowing the bark off it.

They knew it was worse when Shikamaru's shadow techniques possessed every living thing in sight such as rabbits and squirrels and Naruto and Lee.

They knew it was atrocious when Lee randomly used too much inner chakra while performing his _Konoha Senpu_ which caused him to destroy four trees with just one kick.

They knew it was horrendous when Naruto tried cutting one leaf with wind chakra and ended up leaving an entire tree without leaves.

The problem was that they had too much chakra, and no way to properly control it. That's why they had to refine it, distill it down to appropriate levels. Naruto and Shikamaru could still execute _shushins_ without any trouble because that didn't require any control. The chakra simply flowed.

To put it simply, the three of them could do the basics and nothing more. They were ridiculously strong genin with the reserves of jonins, and in Naruto's case, Kages. But, they could do only the simplest of the simple because everything else resulted in chaos and explosions.

If they didn't perfect chakra control, Lee wouldn't use his taijutsu properly, Naruto wouldn't be able to do a rasengan, and Shikamaru's _kage jutsus_ would be imprecise.

They could end up destroying all of Konoha, hell maybe even the world.

"It's official." Naruto tried to control his harsh breathing. "We suck."

"Couldn't you make one of those seal things that you made in the war?" Shikamaru asked Naruto hopefully. Due to his ancestry, sealing was in Naruto's blood, and once he had started his sealing training, he had never stopped. From gravity seals to chakra enhancement, you name it and Naruto could make it.

"No! I mean, yes, I probably could if I had a couple days, but we can't take the easy way out! Seals won't do a damn thing. Training is slower, yet it is more efficient and will have better effects on us in the long run. Seals cannot be our crutch." Naruto examined a simple gravity seal that he had drawn this morning and placed in his pouch. He was still a bit rusty due to his terrible handwriting, but he had at least a month to perfect them so he could use seals during the Chunin Exams.

"I agree with Naruto-kun! We cannot depend on a seal." Lee said, standing up again.

"How troublesome." Shikamaru groaned, popping his shoulder back into place.

"I know it is, but we need to re-assimilate, get back to where we were before we did the time warp." Naruto clapped his friend on the back, grinning when Shikamaru winced.

"Speaking of which..." Shikamaru appraised Naruto's jumpsuit with disdain. It was torn and dirty. "You want to _get back to where we were_, then get some new clothes! That...that abomination is not what my future Hokage will wear!"

Naruto looked at his clothing, reminiscing about the good times he had with his jumpsuit. But Shikamaru was right. He needed to change his clothing. The problem was...

"I can't, Shika,"

"Why not, Naruto-Kun?" Lee asked.

"Well, for one, if I change, then people are going to get suspicious. Our personalities have already _henged_ into something that no one really expects from us, so my clothing can't change. And second..." Naruto chuckled sadly. "The reason why I have this suit is because it's the only thing that the store owners would let me buy without overcharging me."

Shikamaru and Lee looked at their future leader with a mixture of sadness and understanding. No child should have faced what Naruto had. When they had first learned of Naruto's burden, the Rookie nine plus team Gai minus Sasuke had been appalled.

Not because Naruto was the carrier of the Kyuubi, but because finally they understood why he had received all those dirty looks, why everyone had ignored him for so long. Sakura had taken it the worst because she remembered how her parents had told her to stay away from Naruto.

And the others, they had been disappointed in the village that they adored. Their friend was a hero, not a pariah. Shikamaru had discussed this with both his father and Asuma at length. As it turned out, the shinobi of the village were better at understanding Naruto's condition. But save for a precious handful, those shinobi were neutral when it came to Naruto, and many had discouraged him from becoming a ninja for they feared what the demon inside of him might do if let loose.

He had been so alone until he became a ninja. Only Iruka or the Sandaime had payed any real attention to him. If they hadn't...then Shikamaru feared that Naruto may have turned into someone like Gaara.

Wisely, the two of them dropped the subject.

"It's going to be hard." Naruto's voice changed, the Hokage in him taking charge. He met the eyes of his former/future subordinates. "In a short while, we'll meet with our teams again. People who were dead yesterday will be alive today. I can say with full certainty that Shikaku-san is not convinced that we are...who we are. I saw the looks he was giving us. However, that's expected of the Nara Clan. Our Senseis are more perceptive then we give them credit for. They _will_ notice something different." He took a deep breath. "But, it's our job to at least try and pretend as if those people weren't once dead. To protect them, we have to try, and then try again."

Naruto's hands clenched into tight fists. "I'm going to have to look at Sasuke and not want to kill him. I'm going to have to watch as Sakura fawns over the bastard. But I'm not going to watch him kill her...not this time. I'm not going to let Kakashi-Sensei be taken down by Obito. I'm not going to let Tsunade-baa-chan or Shizune nee-chan or Ero-sennin or Iruka-Sensei be taken from me. Not if I can help it."

"And I..." Lee's voice cracked, his eyes were filling with tears as he remembered his fallen team as well. "Gai-Sensei, Neji, Tenten. Besides you two, they are my _family_. I will try to get along with this younger Neji."

"Asuma. Chouji. Ino. My team, my responsibility." Shikamaru raised his fist to Naruto and Lee and smirked. "I'm no Killer Bee, but this would be the perfect time to bump fists."

Smiling, Lee and Naruto touched their fists to Shikamaru's. It was a shame they didn't have a rap to match the fist bump.

It was a promise, a vow, their _nindo_.

They wouldn't give up. Not now. Not ever. That was something that Shikamaru and Lee had learned from their Hokage.

* * *

Across the village, Nara Shikaku stood in front of his Hokage.

The Sandaime took in his head Jonin and gestured for him to sit.

"Shikaku, you wanted to speak?"

The elder Nara nodded. "Did you know that Uzumaki Naruto is a sensory type?" He asked without preamble.

The Sandaime's eyes widened. "What? That's...are you sure?"

"Absolutely sure. Last night, my son invited the boy and another genin to stay over. The first thing Naruto said was, and I quote, _The chakra in your house is beautiful_."

Shikaku watched as his leader leaned forward; the expression on the old man's face was one surprise and shock. "Two things stood out from your statement. One, Naruto has _never_ willingly gone to someone's house. Even when I requested he stay with me for a night, he refused. This tells me that Naruto either trusts you implicitly, or your son. As for him being a sensor, nothing has ever suggested that he should have this skill."

Shikaku snorted derisively. "Do you really think that _anything_ that his teacher's reported is accurate? That boy is talented, Hokage-sama. He's polite and articulate. He called me _Nara-Sama_! And when I talked to him, he was scared...of me! I don't know what the _hell_ the academy is doing! This...this bias against him has gone on for far too long. No one knows that child for who he really is!"

From the corner, Shikaku spotted a hidden ANBU shuffle slightly. He knew who that was. Tori. A good man, but too rigid, and he was one of the few who had wanted Naruto to be taken under ANBU protection permanently when he was younger. His real name was Tenzo or Yamato or something like that.

The Hokage took a long puff of his pipe and watched the ringlets float up. What Shikaku had said was disturbing, but it was probably correct. Besides Iruka, no one had properly paid attention to Naruto. It was Iruka who had taught the child to read properly, who had taken him under his wing. If it weren't for the scarred chunin, then Naruto would not be the bundle of sunshine that he was. The boy didn't trust easily at all, but when he did, it was unconditional trust.

"I've tried," Hiruzen said softly, "to uphold the Yondaime's wishes and make the village see him as a hero. But, people are blind to what's _underneath the underneath_ as Kakashi would say. They see what they want to see, and though I wish it weren't so, I can't change that. Naruto though, he can change that, and I have faith that he will. If what you say is true, then it would seem as though that sneaky brat has been hiding these skills. I want to know what else he has been hiding as well."

"It's not just him, Hokage-Sama, my son and Rock Lee as well. The three of them have formed some sort of training group. They are all hiding something."

The aged man puffed some more smoke out. Such an odd group. The trio was certainly not what he had expected Shikaku to report. "Very well, I will have Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma monitor them for any signs of unusual behavior."

Shikaku stood and bowed. "Arigato, Hokage-Sama."

Hiruzen watched as his commander left the room, a dull ache forming in the pit of his stomach. His eyes traveled to the pictures on the wall, resting on one of a man with startling blue eyes and a shock of spiky blond hair. "I've failed your son, Minato. I've failed the legacy that you and Kushina-chan left behind." The old man whispered sadly.

"Tori, Saru!" He barked, changing emotions within a heartbeat. Immediately, two ANBU appeared in front of him.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." They murmured in unison.

"Get me all the files on Uzumaki Naruto immediately!"

They vanished silently, leaving a brooding Hokage to his own thoughts.

_Naruto, Shikamaru, and Lee. _He thought, staring at the village that he loved and hated at the same time. _What have you gotten yourselves into?_

If only you knew Hokage-sama, if only you knew...

* * *

_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu:_ Shadow Clone Technique

_Kage Nui:_ Shadow Sewing Technique

_Hiraishin no Jutsu: _Flying Thunder God Technique

_Oyaji:_ Old man (dad)

_Nidaime Gai: _The second Gai

_Sugoi:_ Wow

_Mendoukse: _Troublesome

_Konoha Senpu:_ Leaf Whirlwind

_Henged: _Transformed

_No flames please! That would be much obliged._


	3. Reunions

**You would not imagine how happy I am to see all these nice reviews! (And there's quite a few of them) I am sincerely pleased that some of you have said that you have never seen a Time Traveling fic such as this one.**

**If I were to rank Naruto, Shikamaru, and Lee's strengths,**

**Naruto would be #1 in terms of raw power/Ninjutsu/Fuinjutsu**

**Lee would be #1 in Taijutsu, and he would have more raw strength in terms of Shikamaru**

**Shikamaru would be #1 in Tactical analysis/genjutsu, but that's because he has more experience with genjutsu than the other two. I wouldn't say Shikamaru is the weakest, it's just that he knows he's not built the same way Naruto and Lee are. Those two are powerhouses in their respective areas of expertise, but Shikamaru is way more skilled in knowing _how _and _when_ to use the power that he has. He's well rounded in Tai/Nin/Gen jutsu**

**They are, like it says in the description, the three strongest men in Konoha who are still alive.**

**With that being said, pardon any grammatical mistakes and please enjoy the third installment of _A Wrinkle in Time!_**

* * *

This was it. The moment of truth. The moment where the three of them would see how well they could stick to being just genin.

Naruto looked at Shikamaru who looked at Lee who looked back at Naruto. The nervousness was so thick, that they could cut it with a knife.

"Alright men!" Naruto's smile was more like a forced grimace. "Listen, remember what I said. _Pretend_. Pretend that there is no Akatsuki right now, that there is no Madara or Obito. We are _naive_ genin...slightly powerful _naive_ genin. Nothing more, nothing less."

His subordinates nodded sharply. "Hai, Hokage-sama!"

Naruto groaned. "And none of that either!" He glared at his stomach when they smirked at him. "This is all your fault you stupid fox! Mou! _Mendoukse_!"

Shikamaru snorted, though the noise was tinged with apprehension. "Spoken like a true Nara."

His Hokage scowled at him, though being back in his twelve year old _short_ body didn't quite have the same affect on Shikamaru as it did when Naruto was a fully grown and _tall_ Kage.

"Tch, whatever." Naruto fingered his empty neck, truly wishing that he would have the pendant of the Shodaime with him for comfort. That stone had a reserve of chakra in it that always calmed Naruto. He would win _his_ necklace back from Tsunade, no matter what.

"But you're right Ruto, this is all too troublesome."Shikamaru watched the clouds shift from one shape to the next. "I really need a drag right now."

"You are very lucky Temari or Kurenai-sensai aren't here right now." Naruto stated with a reminiscent smile. Those two used to bop the poor Nara over the head every time he started smoking.

"I'll see them soon." Shikamaru whispered softly, his mind racing through the memories he had of them, the good the bad and the ugly.

"And I shall see my precious flower as well!" Lee declared, his eyes misting at the thought of the woman who had captured his being.

"Lee, you and Ayame-chan is something that _no one_ could believe." Naruto grinned. Speaking of Ayame, _RAMEN!_ He couldn't wait to have that heavenly taste in his mouth after four years of not having any. Ichiraku Ramen had been destroyed two years after the war began, killing both Teuchi and Ayame. Naruto and Lee's seige on Madara's forces would have gone down in history books...again... if Konoha would have survived.

"And what about you, Hokage-sama?" The Nara waggled his eyebrows at

"What about me?" Naruto narrowed his eyes at the expressions on both Lee and Shikamaru's faces.

"A certain Hyuuga perhaps?"

Shikamaru enjoyed the choked sound that his best friend made at the mere mention of her.

Naruto's face turned a bright red at the thought of that very Hyuuga. He had been so blind when it came to matters of the heart. Sakura had always been the object of his affection in his youth, so much so, that he couldn't see what was in front of him. Coming to the past meant that he would have to face _her_ as well. In his timeline, nothing _officially_ had happened between them, but he knew that if he or she had lived long enough, then something definitely would have. That is to say, unless Neji decided to kill him...

"I...I mean I..." Naruto cleared his throat and tried to sound as dignified as possible. "Don't we all have to go meet our teams? This discussion will be held for another time." He cast shrewd glances at the other two who were trying to control their laughter but failing.

"Dismissed!"

And with that, Naruto _shushined_ out, leaving behind a mass of leaves that came floating down.

Lee snorted gleefully. "Ah young love! One can only find such happiness in the-"

"Springtime of Youth." Shikamaru finished, berating himself for being happy to hear Lee talk about _youth_ again. That just showed how hideous the future was. There was no _youth_ to talk about. They had grown into adults before they could even call themselves children. "Yeah, I know." He watched the last leaf fall to the ground, sighing softly. "Well, you heard our Hokage, let's go."

Taking one last look at the carnage they had left behind, Konoha's future _Kuroi Kage_ and _Midori Kemon_o left the same way as the man who would one day be known as _Ten no Shinobi. _The Shinobi of the Heavens.

* * *

Maito Gai was usually the first one on the training field, but today, he was pleasantly surprised to find his prodigy, Lee, completing laps around the field on his hands.

Tears came to the man's eyes. Such...such...YOUTH! It was absolutely breathtaking! His diligent pupil was just inspiring! "LEE MY EVER SO YOUTHFUL STUDENT! I WILL JOIN YOU!"

Lee froze mid handstand and looked at his sensei. The lump in his throat grew tenfold at seeing the original Green Beast of Konoha power walk towards him on his hands as well.

Naruto had told him how hard this was going to be, and Lee himself knew as well. But seeing his idol here, the closest thing he had to a father, alive, whole...this was something that he couldn't have prepared for. Desperately trying to stop the tears in his eyes from falling, Lee did a backflip and landed on his feet, trying to muster up the brightest smile on his face.

"Gai-sensei!" Lee said soft enough so only he would hear the affection in his own voice. "GAI SENSEI!" Lee exclaimed louder, hoping that this exuberant proclamation would not make the older man suspect anything.

"LEE!" Gai beamed proudly at his student. "YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH HAVE INSPIRED ME! COME, LET US DO FIFTY LAPS!"

Though Lee had already done about seventy-five, he only grinned and followed his sensei. Everything was alright now. Things were settling in. "NO GAI-SENSEI, WE MUST DO _ONE HUNDRED_ LAPS!" And with that, Lee sprinted in front of Gai, not seeing the fond expression on the man's face.

Neji and Tenten had arrived to train around the same time as Gai did. The two genin watched as their teammate and sensei raced each other around the field with looks that ranged from exasperation to troubled acceptance.

"They're not going to make us do this too, are they?" Tenten asked the Hyuuga.

Neji scoffed. "Hn. Only they are crazy enough to actually pull something like this off." He scowled Gai and mini-Gai. His team was just so...odd.

When Tenten suggested that they train on their own, Neji wholeheartedly agreed.

If he had turned around, he would have seen the wistful and remorseful look on Lee's face before it changed into one of fierce determination.

_I will protect you, all of you._

* * *

Shikamaru appeared a good twenty meters away from his training field so that Asuma or anyone by the field wouldn't think that he had _shushined_ in. Through habit, over the years his posture had straightened. Now, he consciously slouched as he made his way to the training area, his genius mind whirling about.

Usually, Shikamaru would be the last one to training. It seemed that even time travel hadn't changed that. Already Shikamaru could make out the forms of Ino and Chouji. Asuma must be somewhere behind them.

The Nara forced himself to stop and regulate his breathing. He could feel his heart palpating at unacceptable levels. This wasn't good. Asuma would know if anything was wrong with him. Even after just one month of being his student, Shikamaru and the Sarutobi had a strong bond.

As his three team members came into sight, Shikamaru tried not to think about the last time he had seen any of them.

_Ino, her skull caved in and blood pooling all over her body._

_Chouji, a blade piercing straight through his stomach, cutting open his organs from inside. Instantaneous death.  
_

_Asuma, killed by Hidan, blood pouring out of countless wounds, a smile on his face as Shikamaru wept before vowing to avenge his sensei. Kurenai, clutching her expanding stomach at his funeral, one hand with her baby, the other in Shikamaru's. Konohamaru, sobbing for his last living relative, his face pressed into Naruto's chest as the blonde comforted the boy.  
_

Ino spotted him first, and he could see the annoyed expression on her face. If he were actually twelve, he would have muttered 'troublesome' and ignored her. But he wasn't twelve, not in mind anyway. Therefore, seeing a chibi-Ino simply brought a smile to his face.

Shikamaru blinked rapidly as he saw his teacher exhale some smoke and raise a lazy hand at him. Chouji was sitting under a tree, wolfing down a bag of chips as if there were no tomorrow.

It was like nothing had ever changed. And for them, it hadn't. For them, it was just another day, but for him, it was the beginning of something far greater.

"Yo." The Nara raised a hand back at everyone, expertly concealing the turmoil that was hidden beneath the surface.

"Now then!" Asuma rose and ran a hand through his beard. "Since we're all here, why don't we begin on some training!"

Involuntarily, a smile spread on Shikamaru's face that could have rivaled Naruto's. These people here...they were his team...and he wasn't going to let them slip away from him again.

And if they did, then Shikamaru would content himself with knowing that he did _everything_ he could to save them.

But in the meantime, he was going to make damn well sure that the worst case scenario would _not_ happen.

"Bring it, Sensei." Shikamaru smirked. "I'm ready." And he meant it.

* * *

Naruto was not ready to meet his team. Not at all. First, Sasuke would be there. Second, Sakura would still be a raving fangirl. And third, he was supposed to be the blonde idiot, the one announcing that he would be the future Hokage, and not _actually_ the future Hokage of Konoha.

When Naruto looked back at his time as a genin, he realized that he was just stupid. Completely stupid. If he hadn't chased after both Sasuke and Sakura for the better part of his genin years, then he could have been a much better ninja earlier on.

Sakura had turned into a good friend, almost like an older sister. But it had taken him way too much time to recognize the fact that Sasuke was her ideal man, that she wouldn't ever give up on him. When she had said that she loved him back in Iron Country, he couldn't believe the fact that she thought she could use his feelings for her to manipulate him. That had been the time when he truly saw that Sakura could not and would not let go of Sasuke. Even Ino had moved on to Sai.

That was one odd couple though...

And then there was Sasuke.

While it was good for every kid to want to compete with someone else, Naruto had taken it too far with Sasuke. He wanted to challenge the _teme_ at every given opportunity, and Sasuke gave it all. Every time Naruto was even the slightest bit better than him, Sasuke would do everything to belittle Naruto and become the best again.

In hindsight, Naruto knew that he should have let Sasuke go, but it was that stupid promise to Sakura and his stupid pride that wouldn't give up on him. Sasuke had never even truly been his friend, no matter how many times Naruto insisted it was the opposite.

And now, this was his chance to change everything for the better. If he could become a better shinobi now, then the future would be so much brighter. On the other hand though...he could end up setting off a different course of events.

Such is the quandary of time travel.

Realistically, Naruto knew that he couldn't change Sasuke. Which meant that Sasuke was going to leave Konoha one way or another. But, now he knew exactly where Sasuke was going to go, what he was going to do, and who he was going to meet...unless the future had changed.

Hopefully, it had, but even more hopefully, not all aspects would have. Sasuke could have no part in the future of Konoha - especially not the destruction of it.

Naruto sat in the middle of training ground seven, uprooting the grass by his sides, simply enjoying the solitude before his teammates came. He desperately wanted to try and perfect his jutsus and basic chakra control, but couldn't in the fear that he might blow something up.

He sighed blissfully, knowing that his teammates wouldn't be here for another half hour, and Kakashi would be even later. Though he desperately wanted to pull a prank, he suppressed that urge, knowing that it would only infuriate his teammates further. He really didn't want to get on their bad sides this early on.

From the training ground, Naruto could see all the heads of the Kages. Tsunade's wasn't there yet, and for him, they couldn't put it because Hokage Mountain had been destroyed.

_It'll happen, tou-chan, kaa-chan. One day, I'll be there next to Tsunade-baa-chan, Konoha's Orange Hokage, and you'll be watching me._ He looked to the heavens and smiled softly, knowing that his mother and father would always be by his side, through thick and thin, his _two suns_.

Suddenly, Naruto sat up, his eyes darting from here to there. What was that feeling? It felt...familiar. But it never hurt to be too cautious.

Slowly, he allowed himself to relax. There was no danger in Konoha, not at this time. Familiar meant good, it meant that..._chakra!_ He was feeling someone's chakra! This was the second time it had happened, first at Shika's house, and now here.

Eyes roving over the treetops, he scanned for the presence of a human life force. This was an interesting development. Though his skills were no where close to being as good as they were in the future, Naruto had still retained enough to sense a chakra presence in the vicinity. Still, someone had to be pretty close to him for Naruto to be able to sense them.

As discretely as he could, Naruto sunk back down to the ground, closing his eyes, trying to pinpoint the location. To his left? No...his right...seventy degrees and up to his right. He turned his head that precise measurement and followed the chakra up to a tree. There, he caught a sliver of silver hair peaking out and grinned, a nostalgic sigh escaping him.

Kakashi, the sly bastard. He was observing this team every day...

So that's what he did in his time, besides stare at the memorial and come up with all those ridiculous excuses.

Naruto's good mood immediately shifted at the thought of the memorial stone.

Obito.

The man who Kakashi mourned for, was the very man who killed his sensei, who destroyed Konoha, who _killed_ Kakashi.

Obito was remorseless towards the last Hatake. No matter how many times Kakashi had recounted the tale of how he _had_ to kill Rin, Obito never listened. But then again, Shikaku had told Naruto that negotiating and talking with them was pointless.

The Uchiha had taken sadistic pleasure in torturing Kakashi before finally killing him. The sight of his tortured and gutted corpse had haunted Naruto every day.

But he was alive here, and would stay alive.

Shivering at his sorrowful thoughts, Naruto closed his eyes and contented himself by counting the minutes that Kakashi was in that tree, no doubt reading that perverted book of his.

* * *

Hatake Kakashi was not a man who was easily surprised, and if he was surprised, then he hid it quite well. However, when his little blonde gaki had pinpointed his exact location, that had thrown him off balance.

So far, Kakashi had appeared at least an hour before training was supposed to begin, and just observed his genin. Unfortunately, what he saw never pleased him. They weren't a bad team, but they weren't a great one either. Before the Wave mission, his team had been a mess. Team-work was nearly non-existent, Sasuke and Naruto were continuously antagonistic towards the other, Naruto annoyed the hell out of Sakura, Sakura couldn't stand Naruto, and she fawned over Sasuke constantly much to the Uchiha's anger.

After the mission, subtle changes had happened. Sasuke and Naruto had built a shaky friendship. Naruto had really done well on the mission...besides the Kyuubi thing. Sasuke had finally awoken his _sharingan_, and Sakura now knew that the life of a ninja wasn't as sparkly as she made it out to be.

They were beginning to look more like a team, and less like a disaster.

But, Kakashi could see the jealous look that Sasuke got whenever Naruto did something quicker than him, he could see how Sakura never defended the kid, and always gravitated to her crush, and he could see how Naruto would look so downtrodden one moment, and cheery the next. Even if the other two didn't know it, they were slowly alienating the last, and probably the most powerful member of their team.

Kakashi kept his eyes on Naruto, watching him inhale and exhale deeply, a peaceful expression on his face. Guilt tore through the older man. He should have been there for this kid, but couldn't. Kakashi had been on Naruto's ANBU guard, giving the kid a stuffed dog and that ridiculous night cap he wore, but that's it. The Sandaime had been extremely disappointed that Kakashi had ignored part of his family and wallowed in silence.

Still though...Naruto could sense him? He hadn't shown this kind of skill before. This would be something to look into.

With a shake of his head, Kakashi settled back down in the tree. He still had a good hour or so before he had to show up. It was time to see just how Yuki was a bad, _bad_ girl...

Down below, Naruto's smile widened slightly as the sound of perverted giggles echoed through the air, hitting his enhanced sense of hearing.

_It's good to have you back, sensei._

* * *

_Poke. _Twitching.

_Poke poke. _More twitching. Veins popping. A brooding stare.

_Pokepokepokepokepokepokepoke _...Deep breathing, and then..._SLAP!_

Naruto yelped as he was awoken by a stinging sensation on his cheek. He was having such a good dream too! Any dream about rivers of Ramen was a good dream. Bleary eyed, he jumped up and made out a hand coming his way, probably for another slap. Instinct kicked in as he grabbed the hand and twisted it so that it was easier for him to flip his assailant.

He heard a thud as well as yelp of pain. Before he could properly react, he felt himself pushed aside by a much stronger force that caused him to stumble.

"Maa, maa, I think that was quite a demonstration, Naruto."

Blinking rapidly, Naruto's blurry vision finally cleared. Kakashi stood in front of him, an odd look on his face. Behind him, Sakura was on the ground, clutching her wrist with tears in his eyes. And a little to his left stood Sasuke. Naruto clenched his fists as he glanced at the Uchiha. Though he wanted to say something to the boy, he couldn't. It would do him no good to make a scene...

Oh wait, he had already done that.

Taking a deep breath, he looked up to the taller man, controlling his emotions very carefully. _Kakashi is alive now. Don't think about anything else_. Kakashi looked exactly the same. Same gravity defying hair, same headband, same face, same mask, same everything. The only thing that had changed was Naruto himself.

"Naruto?" Kakashi walked up to his amazingly silent student and tapped him on the shoulder. "Anyone there?"

"Sensei." The blonde breathed. He would have said something else, but finally his gaze focused on Sakura who still hadn't gotten up. "Sakura!"

Sakura, though in pain, didn't miss the fact that Naruto hadn't added his customary _chan_ at the end, and neither did Kakashi who raised an eyebrow.

"Sakura-chan, get up!" Kakashi barked, more harshly than he had intended to. He sighed wearily. First Naruto _maybe_ sensed him, and now he's flipping people out of pure _instinct_? Something had changed with the boy. For a split second, their eyes met and Kakashi blinked. Those eyes weren't the ones he had seen yesterday. No... those eyes...those _old _eyes... reminded him...of himself.

Startled, the pinkette rose to her feet shakily. Naruto had scared her out of her wits, and her sensei's tone was scaring her even more.

"Naruto-" Kakashi began.

"I'm sorry Sakura-chan! I didn't mean to hurt you, It was an accident!" Naruto apologized before Kakashi could finish what he was going to say. His sensei regarded him for a minute before nodding.

"Good, now Sakura, apologize to Naruto."

The girl looked to her sensei with wide eyes. "But he-"

"You slapped him." Kakashi cut across her with a frigid tone. "I saw that. If you had woken him up nicely, then he wouldn't have been startled and flipped you over like that."

It hurt Naruto that Sakura couldn't bring herself to even look at him when she mumbled a quick "sorry." These people, they weren't the same people who he had left behind, they were younger and more immature.

Throughout all of this, Naruto had been discretely observing the stoic Uchiha, wondering what he was thinking. Naruto had seen a satisfied gleam in his eyes when Sakura was on the ground, though he could also detect a hint of anger as Sasuke's gaze turned on him. Anger for what though?

"Now then!" Kakashi clapped his hands together. "Since we're all awake and alert, let's go see what missions we might have!"

Very wisely, Naruto trailed behind his team as they made their way to Hokage tower. _Great, not one day back and I've already managed to screw up royally. _He looked up to see Sakura not so discretely trying to get Sasuke's attention who was resolutely ignoring her. He also didn't miss the look that Kakashi sent his way, one that was halfway between concern and scrutiny._ I wonder how Lee and Shikamaru are holding up..._

* * *

_This...is...torture. _Lee thought angrily as he dodged an angry punch from Neji. At first, seeing his team had been amazing, but now, with older eyes in his younger body, he was really getting pissed. And Lee didn't get angry easily...

It all started when Gai had proposed a battle between the two taijutsu specialists. Lee had enthusiastically agreed, not remembering that in this time, he still regarded Neji as a rival as opposed to a comrade. In this way, he and Naruto were very much alike. The dead-lasts of their classes challenging the rookies of the year. And both of them had eventually become more powerful than their rivals.

Lee and Neji were generally well matched at this age, but Lee had the edge even though his control was abysmal. He was putting too much energy into certain attacks, attacks that knocked Neji flat as opposed to knocking him off his balance.

He could sense that Gai was noticing something odd about him as well. This wasn't how it was supposed to go! Yes, people would notice a change, but it was supposed to be subtle, not this overt! Damn, if he, the guy who didn't use chakra, (at least not overtly) was having so much trouble, then he couldn't imagine what the others were going through!

Neji's attacks were coming faster and much harder. Lee saw the expression of utter disdain on the boy's face. Disdain at himself or Lee though? Probably both. Lee could easily pinpoint the holes in Neji's offense and break through, but in this case, he had to lose so that it would look normal.

At his opponent's next strike, Lee crossed his arms and took the blow head on. Now this was _supposed_ to cause Lee to fall back and Neji to win, but fate had other plans.

The second Neji's gentle fist hit Lee, it was _Neji_ who fell back due to the built up chakra in Lee's arms. The Hyuuga landed with a _thud_, spread eagle, flat on his back, a decidedly deadly expression on his face.

In the future, Lee, through Tsunade's help, would that even though he couldn't mold chakra, that didn't mean that he couldn't use it as he had previously thought. Though it was obvious that he could indeed use chakra because of his taijutsu, the method as to _how_ was still unclear. Until that is, Tsunade had sat him down and told him how.

For him, everything was internal. He was able to build up energy in his body and release it, just like how the Gates worked.

Just for a moment, all was silent. Lee looked on in horror as Neji raised himself, a look of menace on his face. He brushed off his clothing in a regal manor and simply stood there, his eyes shooting daggers at Lee. The other boy knew that Neji had lost. Lee could see how fatigued he was. On the other hand, Lee felt great. The drain was nothing, and he didn't feel tired in the slightest.

"Winner, Lee!" Gai proclaimed unnecessarily. Lee turned to his sensei who was standing with Tenten. Though Lee still won against Neji, their battles ended after a very long time, not the five minutes it had taken for Neji to lose. Hence the look of contemplation on Gai's face, and Tenten's shocked one.

"Neji-san!" Making amends wouldn't work, but he had to give it a try. "Nice match!" It wouldn't be prudent to give the "good guy" pose right now, so Lee opted for a more appropriate handshake.

Which Neji obviously refused.

Lee knew Neji's status of a Hyuuga had been hurt, and Lee knew that Neji would not forget this for a long time. But Lee also knew the man that Neji had become, and that was the image he focused on rather than the adolescent one.

"Lee..." Gai began, his tone oddly quiet. "What did you do?"

His pupil only shook his head and laughed in a very un-Lee like manor. It was a rueful sound. "I won sensei." He looked back at Neji's sulking form. "And by doing so, I took away the only thing he could hold on to. His pride."

* * *

Shikamaru sighed for the hundredth time that day. He was so happy to be a genin again. He was allowed to act lazy, allowed to just be a kid. And he was loving every second of it.

They were taking a break now. Training had been fine. Well, for Ino and Chouji it must have been rough, but for Shikamaru (who pretended to be exhausted), it was nothing. His stamina was too high for something like ten minutes of intense (for a genin) taijutsu to tire him out.

"Alright team! Resting is over! Up!"

"Hai sensei!" The three genin chorused in unison and jumped to their feet. And that was when Shikamaru tensed. Asuma, Ino, and Chouji were giving him incredulous looks. Oh...right...he was the _lazy_ one, the one who prolonged getting up as much as possible. He did _not_ get up when the others did.

To save himself, he plopped down again, one arm covering his eyes. "On the other hand, it's too troublesome. I'll just sleep for some more time."

He heard Chouji chuckle and Ino scoff and he sighed again, a sigh of relief. Even Asuma laughed slightly, but not before throwing the genin a look of contemplation.

* * *

The glares were back.

Naruto resisted putting out some of his killer intent towards the civilians, and he didn't glare back at them like he used to. This would get some getting used to. The glares had reduced significantly when he came back from his training trip with Jiraiya, probably because the village had seen what he had done against Neji, had heard about what he did against Gaara, and knew that he was the only reason Tsunade was back as Hokage.

But right now, he was only a genin, one who had done nothing besides getting a bridge named after him.

That was still a pretty major accomplishment in his book.

The walk to Hokage tower was filled with these glares, though they were muted by the fact that Kakashi had somehow traveled behind him, and unknowing to Naruto, the jonin was giving out glares of his own at the offending civilians.

One of the guards to the tower, Ayumi, if he wasn't mistaken, waved at Naruto and ruffled his hair gently when he was within hair-ruffling distance. Due to his constant presence with the Hokage, everyone in the tower knew him rather well, and only a select few protested his being there.

"Big mission today, Naruto-chan?" The woman teased the teen.

In return, she got a huge smile that showed all of his teeth and a thumbs up. "Oh yeah! Hokage-jiji better give us an awesome mission!" Naruto replied, letting his younger, more vibrant personality take over. After all his flops (and one flip) today, he would to dissipate the suspicion that he knew was clouding him, but knew that The Sandaime and Kakashi would not give up until they found what they were looking for.

Therefore, he was very pleased to here the amused chuckle of Kakashi from behind him and the typical "_Baka Naruto" _from Sakura in front. Sasuke didn't say a word, just opting to remain as stoic as ever.

Inwardly, Naruto braced himself for this visit. It had been ten years for him since he had last seen the Sandaime alive, and he wasn't sure how he was going to react. While he truly loved the man as his grandfather, the Sandaime had also ordered the extermination of the Uchiha clan, which led to Sasuke's current personality, his future defection, and the death of possibly the bravest and most noble person after the Yondaime and Kushina: Uchiha Itachi.

Itachi's sacrifice had been his home, his family, and ultimately his life. He hadn't forgotten the gift that Itachi had given him, and he wouldn't. It had amazed Naruto, that even after his death, Itachi had not wanted the truth behind the massacre to come out. He did not want to tarnish the Uchiha name and be regarded as a hero. That man, along with Uchiha Shisui, they were the embodiment of an excellent shinobi.

As they rounded the corner to the Hokage's office, Naruto steeled his darker emotions and put on the face of the happy go lucky idiot most thought him to be.

The secretary led them in to the missions area where the Sandaime was seated behind his desk, filling out some of the paperwork that he so abhorred. Naruto resisted sucking in a deep breath at the sight of his jiji. Idly, he wondered if the Sandaime would have to die in the chunin exams. Was the Third's fate set in stone, or could Naruto change it. And if he did change it, then that meant Tsunade would have to come to the village by different means.

The blonde ninja shook ever so slightly at the sight of the Hokage's traditional hat. He hadn't been able to wear the thing. There was no time for showing your rank when it was war time. Tsunade had made him Hokage in front of the forces just months before she had died. He had had the hat on his head for no more than two minutes before he took it off and gave what Gaara had called "a speech for the books".

Feeling four sets of eyes on him, the old man finally looked up to regard Team Seven. He saw the Uchiha, as uncaring as ever, the girl-Sakura, eagerly waiting to hear what he was going to say, Kakashi, behind them, his book snapped closed for once. And then there was _him_. The boy he had wanted to see.

_The _Uzumaki Naruto, watching him silently, a 1000 watt smile on his face, silent as a mouse.

"Jiji." Naruto said softly, taking in the familiar lines, the wrinkles, the crinkle of the man's eyes as he smiled, the customary pipe in his mouth. Kami, it had felt like just yesterday that he had been attending his funeral, and now he was alive!

Hiruzen's smile faded when he saw the girl bop Naruto over the head for disrespecting him. The boy flinched and frowned at her before schooling his emotions and giving her his customary smile. Shikaku was right. Something truly was awry, Naruto had never hid his emotions this well before.

The way Naruto had said that one word, _jiji, _it had been filled with true emotion: happiness, relief, and just a tinge of grief. This wasn't like his usual exclamations. In all honesty, it was like Naruto was seeing him for the first time.

"Naruto." He smiled back at the boy, wondering what the kid was hiding behind the facade. Naruto had potential, limitless potential. With the Kyuubi, the longevity of the Uzumaki Clan, and his mother and father's genes running through him, the boy was a powerhouse. After all, one does not just learn _Kage Bunshin_ in an hour without tremendous patience and skill. Was it possible he was hiding even more along with his two friends?

"Are there any missions, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked lazily.

"D-rank, or C-rank?"

Kakashi glanced at his team. After the display he had seen this morning, there was no way he believed their teamwork would hold on a C-rank, so...

"D-rank it is then." He said out loud.

There were no loud protests from Naruto, only a quiet pout along with a huff. Sarutobi just raised an eyebrow but said nothing and shuffled through the numerous mission requests. One specifically caught his eye. Hm, this would be interesting.

"Ah, here we go. How about two?"

Kakashi nodded absently while Sasuke deflated at the prospect of doing more useless missions.

"Yakamura-san needs her garden weeded, and since it's nearly midday, I suggest you do that one first before the heat gets to all of you." Sarutobi paused and made sure Kakashi wasn't reading that perverted book (that he himself had hidden in a drawer) again. "The second mission is a request by a Clan."

The jonin looked up sharply.

"The Nara _Ichizoku_ needed a team to tend to their deer. Now, normally Team Ten would do so as the young Nara is familiar with his own lands, but this is their day off. So, after you're done weeding, please proceed to their Clan house."

_He's on to us_. Naruto thought with resignation, knowing this would happen eventually. It was too soon though, for the leader of the village to be suspicious. _But he's cautious, and doesn't know how to proceed. I should have guessed Shikaku-san would have told the Hokage about us three._ If this were any other mission, and Naruto had not just spent the previous evening at Shika's house, then he wouldn't have given it a second thought. But the timing of this mission was a little too calculated.

"Nara?" Sakura tapped her chin thoughtfully, trying to place the familiar name. "Oh, Shikamaru's house!"

"That's the one!" Sarutobi said cheerfully, a bit disappointed that Naruto hadn't shown the slightest bit of a reaction to the name. While he didn't want the child to know that _he_ wanted to know what those three were up to, he wanted to see what Naruto was capable of. Shikaku had said that the boy had shown signs of being a sensor. Hiruzen wanted to put that to the test.

His hands folded over the table, he tapped his desk three times, knowing that Tori, who was hidden in the corner would make his presence known just slightly.

The ANBU in question peered at his leader quizzically through his mask, wondering why he was being beckoned. But then the old man shook his head nearly imperceptibly, causing Tori to stop in his tracks. His eyes narrowed. What was the old man trying to do?

Naruto was rocking back and forth on his heels, waiting for Kakashi and the Old man to be done exchanging details. He didn't dare try and enhance his hearing with chakra. He could go deaf after all. All of a sudden, he stopped. He could feel something in the corner of the room, and it felt familiar, just like how Kakashi's chakra had felt. He knew this presence, knew it quite well. It had to be an ANBU, only their presence would be in the Hokage's office when he was supposedly alone.

Yamato-taicho! That's who it was! Why was he in the Hokage's office as a guard? Wasn't he involved with ROOT at this time? Involuntarily, his eyes flickered to the place where the chakra was coming from, trying to get a glimpse of the man who had helped him in so many ways.

"Something wrong, Naruto?" The old man's voice caused him to look back to the Hokage instead of the corner.

"No, nothing's wrong Jiji! Everything's great!" He chirped brightly, taking one last long look at the ANBU's hiding place before going to the back of the room with the rest of his team who were mercifully ignoring him.

Not once did he notice the glances that Kakashi and Sarutobi exchanged.

Or so they thought.

* * *

"Did you see that?" The aged man asked Kakashi in a murmur.

The cyclops nodded, discretely waving to Tenzo. Good guy, but too rigid.

"Naruto was trying to get a good look at him. He sensed him." For a moment, the elder Sarutobi looked pensive. "I want you to try and look underneath the underneath and tell me if you can feel something different about him. I do, and he's only been here for five minutes. Develop this skill of his, and see what else he's not telling us."

"Hokage-sama," Kakashi ran a hand through his hair wearily, not wanting to voice this particular thought. "This doesn't have anything to do with-"

"No." Sarutobi interrupted him firmly yet softly. "Absolutely not. During your Wave mission, the seal was not weakened as much as we thought. I corresponded with Jiraiya, and he should be here soon just to make sure. But Naruto is not being influenced by the fox at all."

Kakashi nodded and glanced at his team who were waiting for him patiently...well judging by Sakura's annoyed expression, and Sasuke's squinty eyes...not so patiently. Surprisingly, it was Naruto who was the most patient, partially because his eyes were glued to where Tori still stood.

"And one more thing Kakashi-kun." Sarutobi stared into the Jonin's visible eye. "Pay close attention to how he interacts with the rest of the Nara's, as well as your team."

Kakashi was puzzled, but complied nonetheless. "Hai, Hokage-sama."

"Can we go now?" Sakura asked impatiently, her foot tapping on the ground in a very annoying way.

Kakashi just sighed and gestured for his team to leave, but not before he saw Naruto very deliberately wink at the Sandaime and throw a wave at the hidden man in the corner.

He sighed again.

His sensei's son truly was the most unpredictable ninja of all times.

* * *

The first mission passed without a hitch. The three worked silently, yet diligently, with Naruto's shadow clones helping out quite a bit. Though it was a boring mission, it was still a mission. The woman, who surprisingly didn't shoot Naruto a nasty look, was an elderly and kind looking woman who even offered the three children lemonade after their work.

It was the second mission that he was dreading. Not that he didn't like deer, he really did. And he knew the grounds pretty well too. After Jiraiya's death, he and Shikamaru had gotten pretty close as they both knew what it was like to lose a mentor. Shikamaru had shown him where they led the deer out to frolic. The animal had a calming and innocent influence on you, so different from war.

No matter how much he had tried today, he just couldn't bring himself to act _completely_ how he did when he was twelve. The experiences from war had changed him. And they had changed Shikamaru and Lee as well. Lee would probably have the same problems that he did, while Shikamaru wouldn't slip up as much.

Before he knew it, they were in front of the Nara Clan house, giving Naruto a sense of deja-vu. Then again, this life, this timeline, was nothing if not deja-vu.

The door war opened by a small girl, probably five or six years old who looked like a second cousin of Shikamaru's or something. Sakura couldn't help but coo over the child who gave the older girl a disdainful look much to Naruto's well hid amusement.

"Kaa-chan!" She called. "Shi-no-bi are here!" Her eyes widened when she saw Naruto, and he was rather bemused when she threw him a wave and scurried out into the house.

Another Nara, one who had the typical straight black hair that was tied in a high ponytail greeted them with a warm smile. "Thanks for coming! I'll lead you to where the deer are."

_So far so good._ Naruto thought as they walked onto the grassy space. He didn't realize that they were on a slope, and his footing slipped slightly before an arm caught him from falling completely.

The Nara woman was holding him upright, her lips curved upward.

"A-Arigato." He righted himself, gently detaching himself from her grip.

"_Ara_ Naruto-san, watch out, kiddo."

Naruto stared at her blankly, not quite sure if he knew her, or she knew him just because he was...well..._him._ "I'll keep that in mind, Nara-san." The sarcasm in his voice was barely perceptible, but he was positive that she caught it judging by the snort she gave.

From behind, Kakashi watched the little interaction with more than a little curiosity. Was this why the Sandaime had asked him to watch Naruto and the Nara(s) closely? It was clear that the boy felt uncomfortable with the attention, and the woman seemed like she was chiding him almost. There was almost a familiar feeling present here...

"Nice picture by the way." The woman murmured low enough for only Naruto to hear. His eyes narrowed, but his footsteps were even, showing no signs of slowing down.

"Picture?"

"The one that's on the fridge of course. Yoshino-sama took a wonderful picture last night that she labeled _sleeping beauties_. You boys looked so _angelic_ whilst sleeping. You're welcome to take a look afterwards." The horrified look on the kid's face was priceless.

"She...oh crap." The boy stuck his hands in his pockets and scowled. "I'm guessing most people have seen it?"

She only smiled wider. "Of course."

"Poor Shikamaru."

"You have no idea."

* * *

They came upon the vast land of the Nara Estate. It was acres and acres of grassland and the woods beyond it. Naruto marveled in its beauty. The open feeling, the green grass, the peaceful atmosphere, everything had been destroyed during the war.

By his side, he heard the intake of breath from Sakura as a resounding _Hn_ from Sasuke. Looks like he wasn't the only one who was impressed.

"_Sa te_, your jobs are to bring the deer back to this land. At the current moment, they are in the woods, grazing. We need them here in about two hours." The woman winked at Naruto. "Good luck!"

"Two hours?" Sakura groaned. "I've read about the Nara deer. They're as lazy as the Nara clan itself! They won't come in our time slot!"

"Maa maa, Sakura-chan. Have patience, ne? Just work together alright? And remember, no jutsus that will destroy the woods are permitted." Kakashi threw a pointed glance at Sasuke who huffed. The Jonin just smiled with his eyes and made himself comfortable on the soft grass, his book in hand already. This would be incredibly relaxing.

Naruto surveyed the territory. It was quite a lot, but he had his Kage Bunshin so it wouldn't be too bad to locate the deer. Shikamaru had once told him that if a non-Nara were to try and get the deer back, they usually used music or something soothing that would lure the deer towards the sound. Naruto had used the flute, and immediately, a family of deer had surrounded him.

"Ne, Sakura-chan, Sasuke, I think we should-"

Naruto was cut off by Sasuke. "Shut up dobe, no one cares what you think right now. Let's just go into the woods and do this stupid mission." With that, the Uchiha slumped away with Sakura in tow.

A sudden surge of anger was tamped down by the more rational side of Naruto's brain. He wouldn't make a scene right now. If Sasuke didn't want to work with him, then fine. Kakashi had told them to work together right?

Well then..."_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_ Immediately, ten clones popped into existence, saluting the Boss at the same time. He could work together with copies of himself as well...

"Find the deer, and once you've done that, alert me immediately!" Naruto knowing full well that Kakashi was listening to everything he had said and done. Maybe now would be a good time just to have a chat with his sensei without the presence of the others. Just for old..._new_ times sake.

Kakashi had watched as the other two genins had dismissed Naruto before he even had a chance to speak, and instead of retaliating, Naruto had controlled his anger and let them go without screaming profanities. It seemed as though the boy had an actual plan as well. And that tone he had used with his clones...it was one that he himself had used with his ANBU quite often. It was the tone of a leader. He frowned. Hadn't he told them to work together? What were the other two thinking?

Naruto turned around and walked towards his sensei, shaking his head at the sight of the omnipresent _Icha Icha Tactics_ in Kakashi's hand. He too sat on the grass and breathed out deeply. It was nice to just relax in this air. Now he knew why Shikamaru was so lazy. One could spend hours and hours here and not want to leave.

"Aren't you supposed to be doing the mission?" Kakashi drawled, giggling at a particular part on the page, not once looking up from his book.

"I am." Naruto replied softly, in a decidedly un-Naruto like tone. Now that caused the older man to throw a sideways glance at his student "Or rather, ten me's are doing the job."

"Why aren't you helping your teammates?" Though he knew the answer, Kakashi would ask the kid himself.

A brief frown was on Naruto's face before he turned to face Kakashi completely. The boy seemed to be thinking about what to say before actually saying it. "Am I that bad to work with?" The boy's tone was completely serious.

Kakashi scratched his chin as if he was thinking about what Naruto had said, but in actuality, he believed that it was the other way around. "Hm, you're a bit loud and annoying at times, but you're a hard worker who gets the job done."

Naruto smiled, and Kakashi had to blink a couple times. This wasn't the typical Naruto smile, this was a soft smile that reminded him exactly of his sensei. The kid just had to grow a foot and have a deeper voice and _voila_, the Yondaime would return.

"If that's true, then why can't they," He gestured to the woods, "ever listen to what I say." His blue eyes bore into Kakashi's lone gray one. "Sensei, I know that you think that teamwork is important, but the only time we've worked together is during the Wave mission, and that's because we thought _you_ were going to die, and so we _had_ to work together. But in missions like these, we do our own separate work. Sakura-chan tries to copy Sasuke, and I'm left on my own." Naruto ran his fingers through the grass, exhaling softly, glad that he could rant a bit. "You said that we had to look underneath the underneath, right? So then why can't they do that? Why can't my own teammates get to know me?"

All the time that he spoke for, Naruto's eyes never left Kakashi's. The older man was quite simply stunned by what his student had just said. Yes, he had noticed the tension, and the dynamics, but he hadn't really tried to change it. He didn't realize that Naruto felt this way, although he knew that he was left out. The boy's tone was so brutally raw that it hurt.

The kid and he were more alike than he originally thought. At first, Kakashi had viewed Naruto as Obito- the loud, brash, but determined baka. Sasuke was him-lone and brooding, and Sakura was Rin- the one who belittled Obito and idolized Kakashi.

Now though, he could tell that Naruto wore a mask just like he did. He hid everything under that cheery facade. Who knew how much pain was just under the layers?

Before Kakashi could answer, Naruto stood and dusted those horrid orange pants off. He would make it a point to buy his kid new clothes sometime soon.

"My clones have found them. I'll go finish the mission now." With a sad smile, the genin moved a couple yards away and sat down once more. Curious as to what he was doing, Kakashi moved with him, watching as Naruto pulled out a small flute from his pouch, wondering why he had one in the first place. He didn't realize that the flute was just a _henged_ kunai.

And then the kid started playing the little thing, fingers dancing over the holes, playing a soft melody that no doubt the deer would be able to pick up. Kakashi had no idea that Naruto could play, and frankly, up until now, he didn't actually think Naruto had a viable plan.

However, the deer came out, flocking towards the genin. At first, a couple fawns appeared, followed by three does and five bucks. Then, the longer Naruto played, the more deer arrived. Kakashi could only watch as within minutes, the once open meadow was filled with at least a hundred deer.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" A voice next to him said. Looking up, Kakashi saw the head of the Nara clan as well as the commander of the Jonin standing by him. Within seconds, the book was gone, and Kakashi gave Shikaku a salute.

"Sir."

The older man just snorted and watched as a disgruntled Sakura and Sasuke stomped out of the forest, only to stop at the sight of Naruto surrounded by all the deer that they had been sent to find.

"The kid's something else." He shook his head. "That gaki...reminds you of Minato, doesn't he?" Shikaku glanced over to his stoic companion who seemed to have a tough time responding. "Is that why you wouldn't take him...you know...after? He was just too much like him?"

Kakashi bristled slightly, not liking the insinuation that his Commander was making. "After the attack, I couldn't think straight. When the village was being rebuilt, I threw myself into ANBU, wishing that I would forget everything. I couldn't take him. He...I was only fifteen, and didn't have the mindset to raise a child. Naruto wouldn't have gotten a parent in me, or even an older brother. I would have been a kid raising a kid. But I looked after him when I could, I protected him, and now I'm his Sensei. I'm going to make it up to him." He stated firmly.

Shikaku nodded, chuckling when Naruto was knocked over by a buck who had nuzzled him forcefully. "Yoshino said that he's more like Kushina." He sighed deeply. "Konoha has failed him in every way, you know. He's a hero, and look how he's treated by the civilians."

Kakashi could say nothing, so he kept his mouth shut. It wasn't surprising that the Naras had figured out Naruto's true parenthood. No one save those closest to Minato and the elders knew who Naruto's parents were.

"But one day, that kid will be great." Shikaku said with a smirk. "Who knows, he might even be Hokage."

Kakashi's eyes traveled from Naruto who had a silly grin on his face while stroking a young fawn, to Sakura and Sasuke who were watching the boy with jealous eyes. "I believe that. But right now, the future Hokage's Sensei needs to go report a successful mission. It was nice talking to you Commander."

Shikaku watched as Kakashi gently ruffled Naruto's hair and beckoned for the other two to catch up to them as well. He noticed how Kakashi kept himself as the barrier between Naruto and the rest of his team. A frown marred his face. These team dynamics were skewed. It didn't look like a true unit. As they came closer, Naruto's eyes widened at the sight of the Head Nara, much to said man's amusement.

"Minna, this is Nara Shikaku, Commander of the Jonin, as well as the Head of the Nara Ichizoku." Kakashi introduced him in a bored tone.

"Konichiwa, Nara-Sama." Sakura said shyly. All she got in return was a nod of the man's head. Sasuke appraised the man, and couldn't believe that someone who seemed as lazy as Shikamaru was one of the most powerful men in the village.

"Konichiwa, Naruto-kun." Shikaku addressed the kid who looked up sharply. "I'm impressed by the way you brought our deer in."

"Arigato, Shikaku-san." Naruto held the man's onyx gaze, noticing the change from last night's _san_ to today's_ kun_. "It was actually really relaxing."

Sakura looked appalled at the way her teammate had just addressed such an important man so casually, but refrained from saying anything due to the look Kakashi shot her.

The Nara raised an eyebrow. That was new. "Really? So you wouldn't mind coming over a couple times a week and helping Shikamaru?" He kept a passive face at the sudden scrutiny that the blonde was putting him through. But the small nod that the boy gave him made him smile ever so slightly.

"It would be my pleasure."

Kakashi observed the dialogue between the two, slightly puzzled by the same air of familiarity that he had felt when Naruto was with the other Nara woman. It was just something else to report to the Sandaime.

Overall, what he had found was not pleasant. His team was more disjointed than he had originally though. Sasuke was even more distant with them than he had been in the beginning, Sakura seemed torn, and Naruto was much more than he seemed.

"Come on, my kawaii genin, we must report back to the Sandaime!" Kakashi's visible eye turned into an upside down U, symbolizing a smile.

His genin just grumbled and started to walk to the front of the complex.

"Kakashi." The Jonin Commander had his arms folded across his chest, the frown on his face deepening his scar.

"Hai?"

"Keep an eye out on him, okay?"

The cyclops just nodded and followed the trio, wondering why the _everyone_ were taking such a particular interest in Naruto all of a sudden.

* * *

Lee sat on the ground of the training field long after his team was gone. A lot of things had gone wrong, and a lot had gone right. After his fight with Neji, Gai had gone to talk to him leaving just him and Tenten. He enjoyed the girl's presence. She wasn't like any of the other Kunoichi of her day, and had taken her training very seriously.

Talking to Tenten was a welcome change from fighting with Neji. They had talked about many different things, from Tenten's weapons, to Lee's victory, to their dinner plans, and so on.

Afterwards, Gai had made them do some laps and basic stretches coupled with a bit of taijutsu. He had sorely missed being part of this team, and even though Neji was intentionally cold to him, he kept on a cheery face.

But now, that face was gone, and was replaced by one of determination.

"Can I join you?" Shikamaru's voice drifted from his left.

Lee glanced at one of his best friends and motioned for the man-turned-boy to sit.

"Today, Shikamaru-kun, was it alright for you?"

The younger boy nodded and stared at the sky as it prepared for sunset. "Seeing them all here, alive again, it feels like a dream."

"I agree." But the expression on Lee's face didn't match his tone. "I'm afraid that I might have slipped up today."

Shikamaru raised a brow. "How?"

Lee let out a mirthless laugh. "I beat Neji."

"Ah." Comprehension dawned on the Nara. Neji's pride must have been damaged severely. He needed to be brought down a few notches though. Before his fight with Naruto, the boy had a stick up his ass. But that stick wasn't as big as the one that Sasuke had...

Speaking of the Uchiha..."How do you think Naruto's doing?"

Lee jumped up, taking Shikamaru with him. "Come! Let us go to Ichiraku Ramen! I have no doubt that Naruto-kun will meet us there, and we shall satisfy our stomachs as well!" He sprinted away, not giving Shikamaru a chance to say no.

Shaking his head, the Nara just grinned fondly. "Lee, you sly dog. You just want to see Ayame-chan again..."

* * *

"The missions were successful I take it?" Sarutobi asked when Team Seven returned to be paid. Kakashi nodded slowly, but let his eyes travel to Naruto. The Sandaime must have understood, because he paused for a moment before shaking his head.

"Sandaime-sama, I have a request though."

The genin looked at their sensei quizzically.

"On the last mission to the Nara house, Sakura and Sasuke did virtually none of the work. I was watching them carefully. It was Naruto who did most of the work, therefore please let 90% of the pay go to Naruto."

His statement was met by indignant sputtering by Sakura, a very dark scowl by Sasuke, and a genuinely confused look by Naruto.

"But Sensei-" Sakura made to protest, but she was cut off by Kakashi's stare.

"I heard everything, Sakura. I heard how Sasuke cut off Naruto's suggestion, one that _worked_ by the way, and how you followed him. Tell me, why didn't you give Naruto a chance to finish his sentence?"

The girl's mouth moved up and down, her eyes darting back from her crush to Naruto. In truth, she wanted to turn around the second her and Sasuke had entered the forest because Sasuke went down his own path, and Sakura was utterly lost. Neither of them had found any deer until all of a sudden, at least a dozen of them were walking right towards her.

When she had walked out, she was going to exclaim that she had done it, but then Sasuke had been by her side, a disgruntled expression on his face. And that expression had turned downright frightening when they had learned that out of all the people in the world, it was _Baka Naruto_ who had lured the deer back and completed the mission single-handedly.

"You're right Sensei," Sakura murmured softly, her face overheating with embarrassment. "I don't deserve the money." She didn't meet Naruto or Kakashi's eyes, because simply speaking, she couldn't.

"Hn, whatever." Sasuke muttered darkly, knowing full well that he hadn't been able to do anything on this stupid mission, and that the _dobe_ had done all the work.

"Good!" Kakashi smirked. "Well Naruto, I guess we can count this as a solo D-rank mission, seeing as your teammates clearly did absolutely nothing!"

Naruto wondered if Kakashi was purposely trying to make the vein in Sasuke's forehead larger by pointing this fact out. Although he didn't want the money, it did feel good to have someone defend him once in a while.

"Ano, Kakashi-sensei, it's okay...you don't-"

"Maa, Naruto, just shut up and accept it, okay?" Kakashi was still smiling, but there was just a hint of malice underneath it that had Naruto sighing in a resigned manor.

"Hai, hai. I understand." Naruto turned to Sakura and Sasuke. The boy was ignoring him, but Sakura gave him an apologetic look that made him smile.

Sasuke left the room, his scowl widening with each step. Sakura faltered when she saw him leave, and waited a good two minutes until the boy was gone until following.

That left Naruto, Kakashi, the Hokage, and his omnipresent ANBU in the room. Naruto was feeling a bit uncomfortable in the presence of the two, who were currently looking at him intently.

"You did good today Naruto." Kakashi remarked softly. "Nara-sama seemed impressed with your work."

Naruto though, didn't look too proud of himself. If anything, there was a bitter smile on his face. "Well, it was nothing really. Just Uzumaki Naruto, born animal tamer."

Ignoring the sharp looks thrown his way, the boy waved at the older men and pocketed his money. He walked out of the room with a smile. Finally! It was time to eat Ramen! And now he had more than enough to treat his friends and eat as much as he wanted.

* * *

"So?" Hiruzen half-asked, half demanded as he gestured for Kakashi to take a seat.

Kakashi shook his head. "I don't know how I missed this. He's changed, a lot. I heard him say _dattebayo_ all of one time today, _one_! And he seemed more polite. This entire day had been odd, Hokage-sama."

"How so?" The old man rested his chin on his entwined hands, eager to hear more about his favorite genin.

"This morning, I swear that Naruto _sensed_ me, just like he did with Tenzo. And then, Sakura was kind enough to wake the kid up with a nice slap to the face. I watched as he grabbed her wrist and flipped her with practiced ease. He was still half asleep at this point I suppose, because once his eyes refocused, he immediately apologized." Kakashi took a deep breath, letting the Hokage digest what he had said.

"Go on."

"At first, I was surprised why you asked me to watch how he and the Nara Clan got along. Then, when the woman who led us down to the meadow walked alongside Naruto, I got the impression that she knew him, but it didn't seem like he knew her at all."

Sarutobi was surprised when Kakashi made a frustrated noise in the back of his throat. "When they began, Sasuke and Sakura completely disregarded what Naruto was going to say. I really thought that he would do something to make them listen, but he just shook his head and summoned a dozen or so clones and told them to go look for the deer."

"I'm assuming there's more to this story than just you recounting a rather boring mission." Kakashi watched the ringlets of smoke drift up. Asuma and the Hokage had the same bad habit.

"Of course. He and I chatted. Naruto asked me why no one bothers to see "underneath the underneath" when it comes to him. I didn't have an answer to that." Kakashi's visible eye drooped slightly. "As much as I know you don't want to hear this, I truly believe that he's like me, Hokage-sama."

Sarutobi leaned forward, interested and greatly saddened by Kakashi's analysis. Konoha had really done badly when it came to the Fourth's wishes. "Explain."

"He's hiding himself. From what I've seen today, it honestly doesn't seem that Naruto should have been the dead-last. True, he is a bit slow, but he knows how to improvise on the fly. I expected him to use brute strength to capture and subdue the deer. Instead, the kid pulls out a _flute_ and starts playing it. The deer just surrounded him. That's why I asked for Naruto to receive most of the money. The other two didn't help much at all."

Hiruzen swallowed the lump in his throat. When Tori and Saru had returned with the Naruto's progress reports, he had carefully combed through them, looking for hints as to Naruto's other skills. But what he found disturbed him. It seems as though Naruto was repeatedly forced out of classes nearly every day before Iruka took over due to some complaint or another. The lectures that Naruto had missed were those of basic taijutsu training, survival skills, shinobi dress codes, all the major laws, and so on. It was like the teachers were setting him up for failure.

And yet, Naruto had passed, albeit in an unorthodox manor. He even had a bridge named after him!

"Shikaku-sama himself came to see how the team was doing, and seemed intrigued by Naruto." Kakashi continued, breaking Sarutobi out his thoughts. "The Nara clan has taken an acute liking to the kid. I don't know why, or what he did to invite their presence in his life, but I don't think that the Naras are going to let Naruto go."

"Interesting..." The Sandaime muttered. Of course they did. Naruto was a mystery, and it was the Nara Clan's job to break deduce them. Their own son was one as well! "Just...just take care of him Kakashi. We've failed him and his parents in many ways. I want him to surpass them, and us."

"He will, Hokage-sama, I know he will." Kakashi believed what he had said. His sensei had placed his trust in Naruto, and he would as well.

* * *

"You took your time." Shikamaru commented when his friend plunked down in the seat next to him. Naruto looked worn out and more than ready for a meal. To his other side, Lee was paying more attention to Ayame than the conversation. Not that anyone could blame him. After all, it had been four years since the spandex clad man/teen had seen his lover who was still just slightly older than they were and not Lee's lover...yet.

"I screwed up, big time!" Naruto moaned dramatically, placing his head in his palms. "The Hokage is definitely suspecting that something's a bit...off with me, and I accidentally flipped Sakura-chan over, and I went to your house, got all your deer, talked to your dad again, and-"

Shikamaru clamped his hand over the blonde's mouth lest he give him a headache. "Okay! Just stop! Naruto, you said yourself that people around us will perceive a change." He lowered his voice so only Lee and Naruto would hear. "So just deal with it. We know that you can't act the way you did as a kid, and we understand that people will be suspicious. So just _relax!_ " He removed his hand. "Okay?"

Naruto nodded, looking more innocent than he should have.

"Wait, you went to my house?"

Naruto answered in the affirmative, bouncing up and down, waiting until he could order the food of the Gods. "I led the deer back to the meadows."

"With the flute?" Shikamaru questioned.

"Yep. Speaking of which, Shikaku-san asked me to help you out with that once in a while."

"Tch, he probably wants to know more about our friendship. Without a doubt, he'll rope Lee into it too. Nosy old man." Shikamaru grumbled, but there was an air of affection towards his father in his voice that Lee and Naruto picked up on.

"I should warn you Shikamaru," Naruto said seriously, "your mom took a picture of the three of us sleeping. Most of your clan's already seen it, though I haven't."

A _troublesome_ came out of Shikamaru's mouth while Lee was trying to contain giggles.

"Naruto-kun!" Ayame's voice drifted towards them, causing Lee to perk up immediately.

"Ayame nee-chan!" Naruto squealed with genuine affection.

"You three boys ready to order?" She asked, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

They nodded in unison, and rattled off what they wanted. Shikamaru and Lee resolutely ignored the number of bowls that Naruto ordered. It had been half a decade since he had eaten it. They would cut him some slack...just for today.

As each of them prattled on about how their day had went, the sun lazily descended behind the horizon, bidding adieu and letting the moon do her job.

From high above, stars twinkled merrily, winking at each other as they kept vigil over Konoha.

It had been a long day, and the warriors needed to rest.

Naruto looked up to see two stars that gleamed the brightest of them all. His lips turned up in the smallest of smiles, a warm feeling filling him. He hadn't felt this way in a long time. He was back where he belonged.

He and his bretheren would change the fate of Konoha.

War was imminent. But this time, they would win.

Believe it-_tteybayo_.

* * *

_And so the Journey begins..._

NOTE: _Ayame_ means _Iris_ in Japanese

_Kuroi Kage: _Black Shadow

_Midori Kemono: _Green Beast

_Ichizoku: _Clan

_No flames please!_


	4. The Calm Before the Storm

**Wow. That's all I can say. The response for this story has been _beyond_ tremendous! I'm so glad to have readers such as yourselves! I've received nothing but positive responses! **

**So to clear up some confusions/questions, let me do so right now. **

**1) Yes, I understand that The Fourth Shinobi War can't go on for much longer than a week as someone said, but this is a different tale, one that is darker than the ideal war that Kishimoto has laid out. What if something went wrong? There are so many what ifs, and this fic is one response to that. What if their world collapsed and the fighting went on for six years?**

**2) Q: Will Kakashi and Naruto have a closer relationship?  
A: Yes. Their interaction was limited in the first half, and even Shippuden. If Kakashi was so close to Minato, then where was he in the first 12 years of Naruto's life? I feel that those two could be somewhat like siblings, or at least mentor-student.**

**3) Q: Who will find out about the trio's time travel first?  
A: Can't answer that...it's a surprise, but you folks can guess!**

**Also, some of you have wondered what the relationship between Naruto and Kurama was, as it is certainly not as close as it is portrayed to be in the Manga. That's true. I always felt that such a malevolent mass of Chakra, the Kyuubi, can't be tamed by a kid like Naruto so quickly. It's unrealistic. It certainly is possible, and let's face it, Naruto's personality is pretty infectious. So even if Kurama didn't want to, he would find himself liking the kid. **

**Here, he doesn't hate Naruto, that's not what it is. Naruto is wiser in my version that he was in canon. He understands what the Kyuubi is. They've formed a symbiotic relationship, but it's not "chummy chummy." I'll go deeper into the backstory as time goes by. Their relationship will be explored and furthered, but that's all I will say. **

**Oh, and I forgot to mention this last time: UPDATES WILL BE EVERY FRIDAY EVENING**

**With that being said, please enjoy the fourth installment of _A Wrinkle in Time_...**

* * *

Life in the village went on as usual. For the time travelers, it had been two and a half weeks since they had landed. In that time, not all that much had changed. Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru were keeping a more conscious effort in concealing their prowess, yet it seemed as though those closest to them were adept at sensing the change that had taken place.

The time to tell someone who they really were would come eventually, though the Nara Clan would probably be the first to know. After all, the Patriarch and Matriarch were barely letting the kids out of their sight.

For one, Shikaku had actively invited Naruto and Lee for 'bonding time' with Shikamaru at least thrice a week. Of course, this time was spent in

a) learning Shogi (again)

b) tending to the deer

c) watching clouds

d) training

e) avoiding the Nara Head as much as possible

f) discussing plans for the future. Or was it the past? The present, maybe?

Tch. How troublesome.

By their calculations, the Chunin Exams were set to begin in a week and a half, which meant sometime in the next day or two, their senseis would hopefully nominate them to compete. This was going to be a tense time. This was when everything had changed. Sasuke had been bitten, Orochimaru had attacked, Suna had almost invaded Konoha, Gaara went to sleep and unleashed _Shukaku_, and most importantly, the Sandaime was killed.

The exams had led to Tsunade becoming Hokage, Sasuke's defection, the battle at the Valley of the End, and Naruto's three year training trip with Jiraiya.

If argued properly, one could say that the Chunin Exam was the catalyst for the Fourth Shinobi War.

Which is why the three of them had to come up with a decent battle plan that included making sure Sasuke didn't get bitten by the snake though they had plans in case he was bitten as well, Gaara didn't crush Lee, and they had to make sure that Shikamaru didn't jump Temari's bones the second he saw her.

Naruto and Lee didn't want to become uncles this young...

"Ne, Ruto." Shikamaru watched the clouds shift in the sky, a slight breeze ruffling his hair. At the current moment, the time travelers were in Shikamaru's home, enjoying a Sunday without any obligations. It had been a crazy and hectic week. From seeing dead people, to dealing with their fluctuating emotions, to warding off suspicion, they were just glad that they had some time to rest. It was the calm before the storm.

"Nani, Shika?" The future Hokage was currently feeding grass to a curious fawn. To Naruto's left, Lee was doing the same thing with this deer's mother. Much to the Nara Clan's amusement, the deer were more taken with the two outsiders than anyone in the clan. Every time Lee and Naruto visited, the deer had to pay a visit to the boys.

"_Genki desu-ka?_" He shifted to see Naruto pause in petting the baby deer's soft fur.

"_Hai._"

"Don't lie, Naruto-kun." Lee's voice was oddly reproachful. "We know you the best. You're not alright. You've been troubled about something. Please share."

"_Gomenasai, Okaa-sama."_ Naruto grumbled, shooting Lee an annoyed look who looked mildly disturbed at being compared to a mother. Those two, they knew exactly when he was down. It was both the greatest feeling in the world, as well as a pain in the ass.

"Well," Lee looked at the younger boy expectantly. "Go on."

Under Shikamaru and Lee's stares, Naruto gave in. Yes, something had been bothering him, and no, it had nothing to do with whether or not he believed if they could change fate. Because he knew they could.

"It's just that..." He paused, squinting in the sun's bright light. "I feel as though I've made things worse with my team rather than better. I mean sure, Sakura's mellowed down slightly, and Kakashi is a bit more forthcoming, but it's not them who I'm concerned about."

"Sasuke." Shikamaru muttered darkly. Naruto nodded, a frown on his face.

"I'm really trying to be civil to the bastard, but as cliche as it sounds, I'm not the problem, he is." He gently ran his hands over the grass, his actions concealing the agitation he was really feeling. "Was I really that bad, _futari domo_? Was I blind to reality? I realized far too late that...that Sasuke was, Sasuke _is_ nothing more than an avenger. I was just so god damn _foolish_. After that day with the mission here at the Clan House, I've downplayed myself severely. I know for a fact that Kakashi isn't buying the 'stupid' act at all, but Sakura and Sasuke are. I've lost every match to Sasuke on purpose." He gritted his teeth and looked between his two best friends who had slight frowns on their faces as well. "I don't know how long I can do it for. How long I can act this way!"

Shikamaru gently patted his friend on the arm. "Do you want the honest truth?"

Naruto gave him a _what do you think _look.

"Naruto, after the battle with Sasuke, you had a hole in your chest. You nearly _died_! At first, none of us could believe that Sasuke was capable of what he did, but then we saw just how distraught Tsunade-sama was over you. If it hadn't been for the fox, you _would_ have died. And then you made that god awful and frankly, incredibly stupid promise to Sakura that's been burdening you for years. Sai was right when he said that Sakura's promise was causing you more pain than anything else."

The raven haired boy ran a hand down his face and yawned. "Look, Sasuke's not going to change, not when he has his mind set on killing Itachi-san. And look what happened when he actually killed his brother; he _still_ wanted to destroy the Leaf, and partially succeeded."

Lee nodded, completely in agreement with Shikamaru. "At first, I thought that Sasuke-san was a genius. If you recall, I challenged him to a fight quite foolishly. I thought he was strong, and he was, just not in the way that truly matters. He was physically strong, not mentally. To be a true genius, one must be both soft and firm in mind and body. That was what Gai-sensei taught me. Neji-kun was much like Sasuke-san before he fought against you, Naruto-kun. But after you left with Jiraiya-sama, he changed for the better. We could all see it, and even he admitted this to us."

Naruto took a deep breath, processing everything that his friends had said just now. He had known Shikamaru for sixteen years, and Lee for ten. The war had cemented a bond between them that previously was only between himself, Jiraiya, and Tsunade. It was a familial bond. They had stick together to survive. That was why Naruto couldn't let them stay in their own timeline. All of them deserved this second chance, not just him.

"So what you're saying is that yes, I was an idiot for trying to uphold a nearly impossible promise."

"Sure." Shikamaru smirked slightly. "But I used the word _stupid_, and that referred to a promise. You called yourself an idiot. Your words, not mine."

Lee snorted, pointedly ignoring the look on Naruto's face. "Naruto-kun, you've already let Sasuke-san go. Don't dwell on him too much."

"I'm not dwelling on him," Naruto quietly admitted. "I'm dwelling on what he might do."

Silence swept threw the air, reaching the birds high above.

"Stop!" Shikamaru threw his hands up, frustrated at his friend's gloomy mood. "Naruto...Sakura isn't dead. And she won't die."

The three paused and simultaneously winced as the image of a dead Sakura popped into their minds.

_Multiple piercings through the heart by Kusanagi._

_Green eyes, once so vibrant and sharp, dulled with the deadly touch of death.  
_

_Throat, slit, blood pooling by her head.  
_

_Pink hair, lying in tiny wisps around her.  
_

_Sasuke, laughing from above her dead and mutilated body, his Sharingan memorizing every detail of his vicious kill, no doubt so he could re-live it over and over again.  
_

"That future. It won't happen." _Or else._ The way Lee said those words didn't sound like an empty promise. It was like a threat, a threat to all of them that would push them to their limits to change it.

"_Hai._" The blond whispered, closing his eyes out of sheer weariness. "I know."

* * *

Asuma frowned at the lazy jonin next to him who was reading that damned book of his while simultaneously ignoring Gai's cries of how Kakashi was so "Hip" and "Youthful." He wondered why his father had called them here, and why he had excluded Kurenai. Surely this was a meeting of the Senseis of the genin teams, right? She should be here. They should have waited until after her mission was over.

Speaking of the Hokage, he was currently sipping some tea and watching the three in front of him with dispassionate eyes. He wondered how much Gai and Asuma suspected that their favorite kids were hiding something. He so far had only asked Kakashi to keep an eye out on Naruto, and now would be the prudent time to discuss the matter of Lee and Shikamaru with Gai and Asuma.

Tomorrow, the senseis of genin teams would make the decision of whether or not their teams were ready for the Chunin exams. He was curious as to what these three had to say.

"Ahem." He cleared his throat loudly.

Kakashi's book snapped closed, Asuma stood straighter, and Gai's eyes sharpened.

"Hokage-sama." The three murmured quietly.

"I'm sure," Sarutobi began, "Why you are curious as to why I have called you here." Without any more explanation, he opened a drawer to withdraw something, and placed it on his desk.

His Jonin curiously glanced at it, puzzlement marring their faces at the images they were being shown.

"Hokage-sama, these are..." Gai began.

"Our students." Asuma finished.

A separate photo of Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru lay on the desk.

Kakashi rubbed a hand over his masked jaw. Those kids...that was the son Shikaku-sama and the Gai's star pupil. "Are they...are they in trouble?" He was certain he knew where this was going. _Naruto..._

"I surely hope not." The Hokage rumbled. His eyes rested on Gai and Asuma. "Have you two noticed something different about your students, anything...unusual perhaps?

The two in question looked at each other before delving into their own thoughts. Gai narrowed his eyes on Lee's picture, concentrating on the actions of the kid over the past week. Indeed, ever since he had fought Neji, Lee had been acting a bit differently. A bit more quiet, and a bit less brash, but still the Lee he knew. Was it possible that something had happened to his student that he wasn't aware of, and this incident involved the other two as well?

Asuma thought over the slight anomalies he had found with Shikamaru. The over-attentiveness he payed to all off them, the way he would look at his team members and sigh ever so slightly, the less time he spent gazing at clouds or sleeping. It was a bit strange, but not worth anything to report to the Hokage. But what did Shikamaru have anything to do with the other two?

"So?" Sarutobi questioned, noticing the furrow in his son's forehead and the way Gai was gazing off into the distance. It looked like they had found something.

"What is this about?" Asuma demanded, his tone slightly accusatory.

The Hokage motioned for them to take a seat, which they did with slight trepidation. Out of all of them, Kakashi was the most informed, and even he wasn't sure what was going on.

"A little while back, Shikaku-san came into my office and told me that these three," He gestured to the photos, "Have been training together."

"What?" Kakashi was taken aback. Training? He had assumed that the other two were the reason for Naruto's change, but training? The looks on Asuma and Gai's faces held the same surprise that he had.

Sarutobi nodded. "Indeed. Shikaku-san was first made aware of this fact when Shikamaru-kun invited Lee-kun and Naruto-kun for a sleepover. It was then that he discovered that Naruto-kun was a sensory type."

Gai and Asuma looked over to Kakashi who confirmed the Hokage's statement with a nod. "He's good and a natural at picking things up, but he could be better with the right instruction."

"I asked Kakashi to watch over Naruto, you know, to make sure that nothing odd is going on. It hasn't, discounting the fact that we haven't seen a prank from him in a week, he hasn't demanded to take my hat, he hasn't declared his attention to become Hokage over and over again, and he certainly hasn't complained when I give Team Seven D-ranks."

"In that way," Gai began slowly, drawing parallels between the blonde boy and his own genin, "Lee has changed as well. He is more...reserved. Sometimes, he seems almost sad."

"And Shikamaru, he has these wistful glances towards Ino, Chouji, and even me sometimes. He's more motivated, but I figured that's because he's finally realized that lazing around gets him no where. He has to put his smarts to use." Asuma added, his student's actions making a bit more sense.

"Shikaku-san has voiced his concern that they are hiding something, and I am inclined to agree with him." Sarutobi huffed slightly, not liking the Commander Jonin's assessment at all. "I've known Naruto all of his life, and I know that he is not capable of hiding much from me, or so I thought. The boy, as those Chunin and Jonin who have chased him around town after a prank know, is very slippery when he needs to be. He has changed, and Kakashi can attest to that. I believe that this change was wrought from the mission from Wave that Team Seven was assigned a month or two back."

"With Zabuza?" Asuma questioned. Almost all of the Jonin knew of Kakashi's team taking on the Demon of the Mist and saving a town in the process. It was a C-rank turned A-rank mission after all.

"Naruto even had a bridge named after him." Kakashi snorted slightly. "_The Great Naruto Bridge."_

"That's the one." Sarutobi affirmed, blatant pride on his face. "I think that this mission made him see our world, our _sekai_ for what it really is. And he shed whatever shield he was putting up for himself."

"But that doesn't explain the changed in our kids as well." Asuma said after a period of silence.

"Doesn't it?" Sarutobi raised a brow. "Three genin, three dead-lasts, three different personalities. All of them have shown changes at the exact same time, right? This is not a coincidence. Naruto might have told them what happened in the mission, and they decided to grow up. Though this is a weak explanation, it will have to do for now. While I do believe that they are hiding some abilities, I do not think that there is anything darker going on. But, I want all of you to watch them closely. Don't tail them, don't do anything to make them suspicious of you. Just try to spot changes, even the most minute of things, and see how that compares with what they previously did."

After a period of silence, the three Jonin nodded and agreed with the Hokage.

"Do you think they are ready for the Chunin Exams?" The old man asked quietly, gauging their reactions carefully.

"I will tell you tomorrow, Hokage-sama." Kakashi said with a tone of finality. In truth, he wasn't too sure, and he needed some time to think over it. The other two concurred with their fellow Jonin and left the building with respectful goodbyes to their leader.

* * *

Outside the compound, they stood in civil silence, watching the hustle and bustle of the city go by.

"What do you think?" Kakashi carefully masked the interest in his voice through reading his book.

"The more I think about it, the more I can see the changes." Gai said, his voice lacking the usual dose of YOUTH that it usually had.

"Same." Asuma grumbled, taking a long drag of his cigarette. "I didn't think those three of all people would be training together though..."

"It is a surprise." Kakashi murmured. "But once you've seen the way Naruto interacts with the Nara family, I guess it makes sense. They've taken a liking to him."

"Really?" Asuma questioned. Shikamaru really had been hiding stuff from him, especially his rather..._eccentric_ friendships. "Why don't we do this? Why don't we invite just our three teams for dinner tonight at around six? Kurenai's squad is on a mission to deliver some scrolls, so they won't be here until a couple more days. This way, the three of them will be together, and then we can see how they interact with each other."

"EXCELLENT IDEA, ASUMA-SAN! I SHALL LET MY TEAM AS SOON AS I CAN!"

Kakashi sighed at Gai's loud proclamation. He had been rather enjoying this somber Gai, and was put off by his reversal of emotions.

"Hai, hai." Asuma raised a hand at fellow Jonins. "Ja ne." He vanished in a swirl of leaves, leaving Gai and his _hip_ rival.

"KAK-"

"Ja-ne." Kakashi left the same way as Asuma, leaving just Gai and a bunch of leaves on the ground.

The spandex-clad man just smirked and shook his head. Typical Kakashi, so hip and cool. Gai looked to the heavens, his fists raised, and flames visibly burning in his eyes.

He must call on the sacred powers of youth to become more like his arch-rival.

* * *

The idea was great, having the three teams together would have been great, it's just that they couldn't find the three that they needed to see.

Finding Sasuke and Sakura was easy enough. Kakashi knew that the boy trained every day after practice on Field seven, and that Sakura watched him as well. Even on a Sunday like today, he knew that Sasuke and Sakura would be their.

Sure enough, Kakashi found Sasuke kicking away at a dummy and Sakura sitting some distance away, enjoying the view (or so Kakashi supposed). The blond wonder was no where in sight.

"Dinner? With Team Ten and...who's Team Gai?" Sakura had asked with confusion.

When Kakashi had explained who that was (minus Gai's...eccentricity), Sakura had agreed, but not before looking at Sasuke who had given Kakashi a nasty look at left the field. He assumed that meant that Sasuke wasn't coming. It wasn't a mandatory dinner after all.

The only problem now was finding Naruto who had basically vanished. He hadn't found the boy at his favorite Ramen stand, or at his apartment, or at any training field, or in the Hokage's office, or with Iruka, or...anywhere.

Kakashi had been incredibly to tempted to summon his _ninken,_ but decided against it. His student would come...maybe. Food always attracted little boys...right? Oh Kami. Now he sounded like a pedophile...

The cyclops sighed. The Hokage was right. Naruto was a master of stealth, even with that orange monstrosity that he wore. Finding him was just so..._mendoukse_.

* * *

It's not like Gai had better luck. He had pretty much convinced Tenten and Neji to come, not giving them a chance to back down. This would let them interact with the other genins as well.

But finding Lee...that was easier said than done. His student usually went to the supermarket on Sunday and then trained for a good three or four hours. And today, he wasn't at any of those places.

Not the training ground, not the supermarket, not his apartment, or with his teammates.

After searching for two hours, Gai simply sat on a log and sighed. How hard could it be to find a kid in _green spandex_?

* * *

Asuma, of course, was no more successful at finding his laziest student than Kakashi or Gai.

Ino had been at her father's plant store, and Chouji had been at the same barbeque grill they were going to eat at later. Surprisingly, the Akimichi had stopped eating when Asuma told him about dinner and nearly sprinted out of their, shouting something about saving room.

But there was no sign of Shikamaru. Tch. The boy wasn't gazing at clouds anywhere, and he obviously wasn't at any training ground. He was probably at home, and if he was at home, the Chouji would definitely tell the boy to come.

Technically, other ninja were not allowed into a Clan member's home without the permission of the Clan head or another high ranking member of the family. Asuma was not going to go through all that trouble just to find one kid when he hoped that Chouji would do it for him.

He inhaled a lung-full of smoke, grimacing when he heard Kurenai mentally screaming at him to put the cancerous thing down.

Asuma sighed, looking at the clouds floating lazily above. Since when did the boy who called everything in the world 'troublesome' become the troublesome one himself?

* * *

"Naruto nii-chan! Lee nii-chan! Play with me! Please!" The same little girl from Naruto's mission to the Nara house came running down the hill and plowed straight into Naruto who grunted with a mix of pain and amusement.

"Asami-chan." Naruto stroked her soft raven hair and gave Lee an exasperated look. Ever since they had been staying at the Nara Complex, the little girl had taken to Lee and Naruto very quickly much to the amusement of her mother and Shikamaru.

"Nii-chan!" She whined, clenching her fists, a pout on her face.

Shikamaru couldn't help but grin. She reminded him so much of Asuma jr. who was so full of life and joy before...before he and Kurenai were killed when their house collapsed. The Nara refused to let those thoughts cloud his mind and focused on Naruto's vibrant smile as he let the little girl bounce up and down on his stomach.

Naruto...that man was a natural with kids, and he didn't even know it.

"Hai, hai, _hime-sama_." Naruto picked himself up along with Asami and threw her in the air, catching her, and then throwing her higher. The girl squealed with delight, her childish giggles lightening Naruto's heavy heart. He wanted to preserve this girl's smile, not give her the future that he had experienced, a future where smiles were used only when cutting the enemy down.

"Lee nii-chan!" The girl rushed to the older teen and held her hands out expectantly. With a giant _whoop_ from Lee, he proceeded to do the same thing that Naruto had done.

"Were you like this too Shika?" Naruto nudged his friend playfully. "You know...energetic? Or is she an exception to the Nara clan?"

"Shut up." Shikamaru grumbled. He looked up at the sky, watching it shift colors minutely. Evening was setting in. "It's getting late. You know Kaa-san is going to make the two of you stay for dinner and then force you to sleep over. That's what she's done _every_ time, and admit it, you guys like it. So let's go inside."

They watched as Lee, who had heard what they said, scooped the tiny girl up and placed her on his shoulders, whistling merrily as he nearly sprinted up the hill.

Indeed, at the top of the hill, Asami's mother and Yoshino waited for the four of them to arrive at the back entrance to the house. Asami switched from Lee to Naruto, and he willingly accepted her to climb on his shoulders and pull at his hair.

Through all the fun and merriment, none of them realized that their senseis had been looking for them the entire day...

* * *

"So..." Asuma began awkwardly, looking at the five genin in front of him.

The eight of them: him, Kakashi, Gai, Kakashi's pink haired brat, his two brats, and Gai's two brats, were sitting in a comfortable booth in a not so comfortable environment.

Ino and Sakura kept shooting daggers at each other, Chouji was shifting around uneasily, and Tenten and Neji were looking at the younger genin with suspicion and derision.

Worst of all, Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru were no where in sight.

_Ayashi..._

Thankfully, Kakashi had put away his book and opted to fix the genin with a death stare, one that was making the other customers very uneasy.

"They're not here." Kakashi muttered, loud enough so only the Jonins would hear him.

"Sensei," Ino looked at Asuma cautiously. "Why are we here?"

Asuma laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Um...well, we," He pointed at his two companions, "thought that this would be a good idea, you know, to get to know your fellow genins and the people you will be fighting with in the future."

"Where's Shikamaru then?" Chouji asked, chomping away at the appetizers in front of him.

Asuma winced. That was the million ryo question. Where was he? And Naruto and Lee? Hadn't Chouji told him? "Shikamaru? I couldn't find him today. Is he at home?"

Chouji looked at his sensei, his face covered in bits of food. "Dunno. Maybe. I would have gone over, but Tou-san wanted me to spend some time with the family today."

The bearded jonin concealed a sigh. So the kid was at home. And that meant that Lee and Naruto were probably with him...

"Yosh!" Gai exclaimed. "My _kawaii_ genin! Introduce yourselves!" Underneath all the cheer, Gai was thinking the same thing as Asuma.

Neji and Tenten looked from their sensei to the looks on the other genin and dropped their heads.

"Hyuuga Neji." One glare from the older boy silenced the other children's attempts of talking to him. This teen was like Sasuke, but worse.

"Tenten!" The bun-haired girl waved cheerfully, inwardly comparing herself to the other genin girls and noticing how they weren't eating anything. She frowned. Were they on diets or something? No kunoichi could survive without eating almost as much as their male counterparts.

"Akimichi Chouji!" The rotund boy waved back, eagerly biting into some tempura shrimp.

"Yamanaka Ino." The blond girl flipped her hair back in a smug manor that made all of the Jonin cringe.

"Haruno Sakura." Sakura looked at the older team, and watched as the girl, Tenten, ate her fill. She looked down at all the food and heard her stomach grumble. It looked so good...but was so fattening.

Tenten looked around, a frown on her face. "Where's Lee-kun?"

"And Naruto?" Chouji asked.

"Sasuke-kun?" Ino's face went from hopeful to disappointed in seconds.

"Maa, Sasuke didn't want to come, and I guess we just couldn't find the other three." Kakashi smiled at them. It seemed as though those three boys were spending time together...probably with the Naras. It was slightly concerning that Sakura didn't even notice that Naruto wasn't with them. His team's dynamics had seriously been screwed up. Maybe entering them into the Chunin Exams, regardless of whether they became Chunin or not, would improve their teamwork, if it didn't kill them that is.

"So then let's eat, kids! Enjoy to your hearts content!"

Though Gai said this, he himself was put off by the fact that Lee wasn't here. And he could tell that Kakashi and Asuma felt the same way about Naruto and Shikamaru.

As the three Jonin ate, they couldn't help but notice the awkward atmosphere that they were in.

They sighed in unison.

This was going to be a long night.

* * *

"Naruto-kun, Lee-kun, Shika-chan!" Yoshino practically sang as she waltzed into her son's room the next morning, hoping to give the three a _nice_ wake up call. "Wake - _ara_?"

She stopped in the middle of the room, surprised at the lack of human presence. The beds had been made nicely, it looked as though no one had slept in them. The kids weren't here, and it was only seven in the morning. Did they have missions today?

The woman sighed. Boys will be boys, she supposed. But these particular boys...they were so troublesome.

* * *

"_Konoha Senpu!"_ Lee cried, smashing his foot against Naruto's crossed arms, watching as his leader fell back onto the ground with a loud _thud_. Naruto got up, cradling his hurt arms, thankful for the healing powers of the still sleeping Kurama.

"That was good, Lee." Shikamaru remarked from the side. "But it still had too much power. If Naruto wasn't coating his arms with chakra, you would have permanently broken them."

Lee looked at Naruto with a startled expression. The other boy just grinned and shook his head. "It's okay, Lee. Trust me. That was really good, but Shika's right. I think we all need to tone it down." He gestured to the training field which was destroyed once again.

Naruto pinched his forehead in exasperation and sat back on the ground with a childish expression. "Mou! It's been like two weeks and a half since we've been back, and we have only progressed slightly. And the best out of all of us is obviously Shikamaru, but he's a freakin' genius so I'm not counting him! We've only got two more weeks till the Chunin Exams, and today is the day we may or may not get nominated! _MENDOUKSE!_"

"Maa maa, Naruto-kun." Lee placated the annoyed man/boy. "At least we're not destroying trees while trying to climb them." It was true. They had regulated their chakra enough so that they could cling to any surface now, water included. That was the only upside to their predicament.

"Tch. Whatever." Naruto grumbled, still not uncrossing his arms.

Lee shook his head fondly. "Really Naruto-kun, you're like a cross between Shikamaru and your old self right now!"

Shikamaru glanced at Naruto who was chuckling softly. "We've all changed you know. And we've spent so much time with each other that it's hard not to copy the others at times. Even you Lee, you've become more serious."

"Circumstances force us to cast a _henge_ on ourselves." Naruto said, a sad smile on his face. "The last thing Kakashi-sensei said to me was, _Don't ever change, Naruto. _But that just wasn't possible."

"It's for the best really." Lee stated. "To face what is coming, we must grow up."

Shikamaru breathed in deeply, wondering for how much longer Konoha would still retain this sweet smell before it would be filled with the coppery tang of blood. Suddenly, his eyes widened.

"Guys, what day is it today?" He demanded.

Naruto and Lee looked at his quizzically.

"Mon-" Naruto's face morphed into one of comprehension, as did Lee's.

"Well crap." Lee deadpanned. "Just lovely."

The other two just sighed in resignation.

Today was the day that Gaara was coming to town.

Which meant that Temari would also be there.

Which meant that Shikamaru was about to see his wife for the first time in a long time.

Which meant that Lee and Naruto would have to make sure that he _didn't_ see her, lest Suna claimed sexual harassment charges against the Nara Clan for trying to make a move on the Kazekage's daughter.

_All in a day's work for the Hokage and his subordinates.  
_

* * *

Gathered in the Hokage's office were all of the instructors of the genin teams. Kurenai, who had just returned from a C-rank mission with her team was standing proudly beside Asuma, eager to nominate her squad. They were ready for whatever challenges came their way. She was sure of it.

Amazingly enough, Kakashi was on time for this meeting, probably because the Hokage had told him that it would be at eight in the morning instead of it's actual time of eleven...

In the corner stood Umino Iruka, the Academy instructor who also served as an aid to the Hokage from time to time. He would be the one making tallies as to who was participating and who was not.

The Hokage himself was seated behind his desk, lazily puffing away on his pipe. He fixed a calculating gaze on Gai, Kakashi, and his son who returned it without so much as a flinch. He was most interested as to what these three were going to do.

"_Sa te_, let's begin. Let the records show that this meeting has been called to announce which of Konoha's genin teams will be nominated for this years Chunin Exams that are being held in Konoha." He paused and looked around, his eyes landing on a certain Jonin.

"Raidou!"

The scarred Jonin snapped to attention. "Hai, Hokage-sama. Team three does not qualify. As you already know, Fujiwara Natsumi has quit, and the other two are certainly not fit."

Iruka made a careful mark in his notebook.

"Genma!"

The bandana wearing, senbon chewing Jonin just gave the Hokage a blank look. "No."

Many Jonin around him snickered.

"No?" The Hokage repeated.

"No." Genma reaffirmed. "Hell no." He added as an after thought. "I do not nominate team five."

Hiruzen snorted softly, but moved on. "Kurenai-chan! What about your team?"

The genjutsu mistress beamed with pride. "Team Eight has my nomination. They truly are a wonderful team!"

Iruka's pen paused as he hesitantly ticked off Team eight. A rookie team? Were they ready?

The Hokage nodded, but not before checking Asuma, Gai, and Kakashi's reactions. They looked intrigued. "Aoba!"

The sunglass wearing Jonin simply nodded his head. "Hai! My team is ready...I think." He added in an undertone. "I nominate Team Six!"

Sarutobi looked to Gai. "Gai, your team?"

Gai gave the Hokage a blindling (literally) smile. "HAI HOKAGE SAMA!mMy youthful genin are more than ready for this challenge! I nominate Team Gai!"

"I hear that Gai's prodigy and that Hyuuga kid are quite good." Raidou whispered to Aoba who nodded. "The kunoichi is supposed to be a weapons mistress."

"Asuma, you?" Sarutobi wanted to hear more about his son's team.

The bearded Jonin put his hands in his pockets and slumped slightly. "Those three are the new Ino-Shika-Cho. Of course they're nominated."

Mutterings were heard all around the room. _Two_ rookie genin teams?

And then that left..."Kakashi-kun. Team Seven?" Hiruzen was waiting for this. Two rookie teams plus Gai's. If Kakashi would nominate his own team, then this exam truly would be interesting.

Kakashi looked at Asuma and Gai who gave him speculative glances. He wanted to see Naruto's true potential, as well as Shikamaru's and Lee's. The exams were the only way to do so. While he wasn't confident that they would do _well_ as a team, they worked together when it really counted. His gaze transferred to the Hokage's, and he nodded slightly. "Team Seven is nominated as well."

"Oi, Kakashi, you sure?" Genma asked him worriedly. "And you as well, Asuma-san, Kurenai-san? Are your teams truly ready?"

"If they weren't, we wouldn't nominate them." Kakashi said with a hint of menace. Genma's words did strike a chord though. Was his team ready? Maybe, maybe not, but they would participate.

Iruka had been standing quietly so far, but he wouldn't after Kakashi's announcement. He held great respect for the Copy-Ninja, but..._Naruto..._

"Hokage sama! You can't let them enter three rookie teams into the exams! People die! They're not ready! Please recons-"

"By _they_," Kakashi cut across sharply, pinning a glare to the instructor who shrank back ever so slightly. "You're referring to Naruto, right?"

"What!" Iruka exclaimed, not willing to accept defeat. "No! I taught those kids! I know that some of them are qualified, but certainly not all of them!"

There was a tick in Kakashi's jaw that only he could feel. Though he knew that Iruka was one of the few who genuinely cared for Naruto, it annoyed him that he was going to ruin that kid's chance of participating.

"Once again, by _them_, you mean Naruto." There was deadly silence as Kakashi inhaled and exhaled audibly. When Kakashi got mad...he really got mad. "Uzumaki Naruto." Kakashi's soft voice carried an undertone of annoyance and anger to it. "Is no longer your student, _Umino_."

Iruka bristled at the man's perceived insult."But!"

"But nothing!" Kakashi rumbled. "He is one of the most talented genin of his class." Now that was pushing it, as Kakashi hadn't actually seen much of the boy's hidden talent, but he was sure it would come out during the exams. "He's smart, driven, charismatic, and nothing like what his reports say." The jonin casually flexed his arms in a way that was intended not to be casual at all. "It makes me wonder just how _accurate_ those reports really were."

Stunned silence followed Kakashi's statement. Even the Hokage had nothing to say. He had read the reports on Naruto himself and knew that they were not accurate in the least. But for Kakashi to actually voice this...

Iruka's jaw moved up and down, wanting to say something, but he couldn't. He didn't write those reports, someone else did. Still though, he knew Naruto's skill first hand. Naruto had learned the Kage Bunshin a _kinjutsu_ in one hour. But that could have been a fluke. Hearing Kakashi's high praise of Naruto gave Iruka a feeling of pride and left him a bit surprised as well. Naruto...Naruto was _smart_?

"So if there's nothing else, I'll leave now." Kakashi's tone returned to normal and he smiled at the scarred chunin before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

"Iruka-kun." The Hokage smiled at the young man kindly. "I know how much you care for Naruto, but Kakashi-kun is right. They are not your students anymore, and Naruto truly is something."

"He's something alright." Aoba muttered. "He painted ANBU headquarters _orange_ when he was _seven_."

Genma chuckled. "I remember that. When we caught him three hours later with paint buckets and paint bombs and nearly hauled his sorry ass over to Ibiki-san, he told us that he was following _Inu nii-san_ and wanted to thank him for giving him something. But when he couldn't find _Inu nii-san_, he got frustrated and dropped fifty paint bombs over HQ with no one noticing." He turned to Iruka. "Care to guess who this Inu nii-san was?"

"Kakashi-san?" Iruka said in a slightly timid voice, hating himself for sounding like a child.

Genma nodded, amusement all over his face. "When Kakashi heard what the little devil had done, he promptly brought him another gift. So if Kakashi thinks that kid is ready, then we should too. He knows him the best after Hokage-sama after all."

Iruka gave a resigned sigh and ticked off Team Seven as well. Three rookie teams huh?

_Omoshiro_.

* * *

Sarutobi Konohamaru, the Honorable Grandson of the Sandaime Hokage, was currently running away from a pink haired _bakemono_ in a not so honorable way.

It had all started when he was with his Naruto nii-chan...

_Flashback_

"Ne, ne Naruto-nii!" Konohamaru bounced up to his boss with a wide smile that was missing a couple teeth. His boss had looked down at him with kind eyes that reminded him of his grandfather at times.

"Nani, Ko?" Naruto asked, ruffling Konohamaru's hair with affection.

Konohamaru stared at his boss. He had never called him _Ko_ before. It was then that Moegi and Udon bounded up beside him, smiling brightly at their _oyabun_.

"Can we play ninja?" Udon asked excitedly. "_Onegai!"_

Naruto ruffled Udon's hair too, and Konohamaru couldn't help but feel slightly jealous. "Hai, hai. We can play ninja."

"A ninja playing ninja?" A new voice piped in. "Honestly Naruto, what are you doing with these brats?"

That was the voice of the pink haired bakemono who Konohamaru would eventually run away from.

Naruto had a strange glint in his eyes, one that was somewhere between annoyance and protectiveness, Konohamaru noted. His boss moved in front of the three of them and crossed his arms. At first, Konohamaru thought he was going to yell at the girl, but then he smiled at her. This disappointed him more than it should have.

"Maa, Sakura-chan. Konohamaru just wants to play, what's wrong with that?" Naruto asked sweetly, but Konohamaru still thought he heard something else in his boss's voice, something that wasn't so sweet.

The pink haired girl had thrown glares at the three kids who crouched behind Naruto. Konohamaru felt Naruto's arm tense as he shielded the three even further.

"Ne, nii-chan. Is she your..." Konohamaru held out his pinky finger. "You know..." He sincerely hoped not. That other girl, the one who stalked Nii-chan with the purple hair and cool eyes, she just seemed so much better than this person even if she was a bit strange...

The pink haired girl had this really big bulge in her forehead that looked like it was about to burst. "What! Naruto and I! Me and that _baka_! No way!"

Konohamaru looked to his boss who looked kind of sad. The kid frowned. _No one _called his boss a _baka_ and got away with it.

Naruto didn't say anything, which calmed the girl down slightly. But the kids behind him were still scared out of their minds.

"Tch." Konohamaru snorted. "As if _our_ boss who is cool and handsome would like a girl with pink hair."

And that's when his boss told all of them to run...

_Flashback end_

"Why didn't I keep my mouth shut?" Konohamaru asked himself as he ran through the streets, still feeling the killer intent of the pink haired witch who's name was Sakura.

"Baka baka baka baka baka ba-_ooph!"_

Konohamaru felt himself falling into something soft but hard before he was pulled up by his shirt rather roughly.

The next thing he knew, he was looking into the eyes of _another_ monster. But this one was a man who looked like he had come from a _Kabuki_ theatre.

"Oi gaki! How dare you run into me!" The monster spat in Konohamaru's face. "Don't you know who I am?"

Konohamaru looked at the man, noticing that he wasn't actually a man, but a teenager, and also that he had a headband that was different from Konoha's. Was this an invasion by foreigners? What was going on? Konohamaru struggled with all of his might to break free of the person's grip so he could alert the village of an attack.

"Kankuro." Konohamaru looked to his right and saw that another person, a teenage girl was talking. She had four pigtails, and her hair was almost the same color as Naruto-nii's. She had a huge fan strapped to her back as well.

"Let the gaki go." The girl drawled, sending a cold shiver down Konohamaru's spine. "He's just a shrimp."

"I was just going to teach the kid a lesson." The weird make up guy said, smiling in a not so nice way at Konohamaru.

_Someone, save me._ Konohamaru thought, squeezing his eyes shut. He couldn't die like this! Not before he fought Naruto-nii for the spot of Hokage! Not before he took the hat from Naruto!

"I would listen to the lady if I were you."

Konohamaru smiled at the voice. "Naruto-nii!"

Naruto had been expecting a confrontation with the Suna siblings, but never did he think that it would go the same way it had in his timeline. He suppressed a smile at the thought of seeing the future Kazekage again. Gaara hadn't shown up yet. That guy always loved dramatic entrances...

"You." Temari pointed at Naruto. "You're this gaki's nii-san?"

Sakura, who had just appeared on the scene was slightly out of breath. She had been about to deck that kid when she noticed the odd shinobi in front of her and Naruto, one of whom was holding the gaki hostage. She glanced from Konohamaru to Naruto, wondering what was going to happen. Those two, they seemed strong. Naruto wouldn't be able to take them on if they picked a fight, which they seemed like they would. And those headbands! They weren't from Konoha! What were foreign shinobi doing on Konoha's soil!

"That's right. I'm his _aniki_. So let the kid go." For Naruto, it was hard not to smile at the woman who would become a sister to him in everything but blood. Next to her, Kankuro looked so live, so _whole_, which certainly hadn't been the case when they had seen him last.

"After all," The grin on Naruto's face was downright evil. "It wouldn't look good if Suna Shinobis attacked the grandson of the Hokage before the Chunin Exams even began. You would be disqualified immediately."

"Hokage's grandson?" Kankuro looked at the brat in his hand who was sticking his tongue out at him.

Sakura blanched as she took another look at the kid. _That_ was the Sandaime's grandson? It was a good thing she didn't attack him. She would have gone to prison. And what was this about the Chunin Exams? That would explain the foreign ninjas' presence, but why did Naruto know about this before she did?

"Kankuro." The voice behind him froze him solid. "Let him go. You're embarrassing us."

The older teen dropped the kid immediately, not noticing how the younger blond caught him, or how the Konoha nin's eyes shifted from fierce to warm as he looked at the red head who had just appeared.

Naruto tried to not look happy as Gaara, his friend (not yet), albeit a younger, bloodthirstier, and frankly, quite insane, friend glanced at him with cold teal eyes. Everything was the same with Gaara. The same _kanji_ for love carved into his forehead, the same gourd strapped to his back, the same clothes that he wore when he was a teen.

He felt his stomach rumble slightly and knew it had nothing to do with hunger. Even though Kurama was asleep, he could still feel the presence of one of his wayward siblings.

Konohamaru snuggled into Naruto's arms, hiding himself from the opposing ninja's glares.

Gaara observed the short blonde. His mother...she was calling for this boy's blood...but she was also scared of him for some reason. Mother was never scared, and if she was scared, then he would have to eliminate this...flea. It would be an interesting fight. This boy...he was strong, or at least he seemed strong. Gaara couldn't wait to fight him. However, there was something else. The boy, he seemed familiar. Or that's what his mother thought.

"You, what's your name?" Gaara pointed at Naruto who looked back at him passively.

"Uzumaki Naruto." The boy gave him a piercing look. "This is Haruno Sakura, my teammate." He gestured to the annoying girl next to him. "What's yours?"

Gaara raised an eyebrow. "Hmpf. Sabaku no Gaara. These are my siblings, Temari and Kankuro." The boy walked past Naruto who was currently trying to hold in quite a bit of laughter. He held Gaara's eye contact as the other boy stopped. The future Kazekage and Hokage sized each other up before Gaara snorted derisively.

"Uzumaki Naruto. Mother wants your blood." Gaara said without a trace of emotion, turning on his heel with his brother and sister following him cautiously.

Naruto gently placed a shivering Konohamaru on the ground, and stared at Gaara's retreating figure with sadness and amusement together. It was somewhat confounding how the Gaara of the future had once been the Gaara who had just been in front of him. It resonated within his heart, that he, Uzumaki Naruto, was the one who had helped change the Kazekage into the man that he had been. Which is why Naruto would do everything in his power to help Gaara once again.

"Good to see you too, bro." He whispered softly before holding Konohamaru's hand and leading him back into the village, simply listening to the younger boy squeal about how awesome his _aniki_ was.

Throughout all of this, Sakura watched as Naruto and the brat left, wondering when Naruto, the dead-last, had become so..._cool_.

Up above, in a tree, three genin wearing headbands with music notes on them watched this interaction very carefully.

"Orochimaru-sama ordered us to gather intel on Uchiha Sasuke. Those two are his teammates." One of the genins said.

"Shouldn't we report this Uzumaki fellow to Orochimaru-sama? He seems pretty strong." Another one said.

The third scoffed. "No. Our target is the Uchiha and the Uchiha only. Besides, if this other genin was that strong, then we would have heard about him."

Without rustling the leaves of the tree, they vanished, no doubt meeting with their master.

And just like that, the wheels had been set in motion.

Now let's see where the car takes us.

* * *

"Hai! Here you go!" Kakashi exclaimed cheerfully, giving his genin a slip of paper.

"Kakashi sensei, this is..." Sakura looked at him with giant eyes.

"Hn? Chunin Exams?" Sasuke grunted with interest. Perfect. Now this was a place where he could truly unleash his power and face other strong opponents instead of weaklings like Naruto and Sakura. Just thinking of a fight made his blood hot.

"Really sensei? Really?" Naruto tried to hug Kakashi who was carefully keeping the ecstatic genin at bay.

"Yes Naruto." Kakashi said patiently, giving into the temptation of ruffling the boy's hair. "You've been nominated for the Chunin exams. Congratulations!"

"Arigato!" Naruto nearly yelled, truly happy that nothing much had changed. They were still nominated! Which meant that Orochimaru was here as well. He carefully didn't show the disgust he truly felt at the thought of that Hebi-teme being in Konoha. Compared to Nagato and the Uchihas, Orochimaru was a relatively small insect, but his bite truly was devastating.

"Yatta!"

"Oi Baka!" Sakura bopped him over the head. "Don't celebrate! The Chunin Exams are very hard so we all have to do our best."

"Hn." Sasuke snorted. He didn't have to be told that, even Naruto didn't need to be. Sakura should learn to take her own advice.

Naruto clutched his throbbing head, inwardly wondering if this was the reason he was so stupid. Had Sakura's _love pats_, as he deluded himself into thinking, taken too many brain cells that had miraculously regrown as he got older?

"Na-ru-to." Kakashi sang.

"Sensei?"

The older man cast a steady gaze over the young boy, who returned it unflinchingly.

"These exams will show the Nations what you are made of, so please listen to Sakura-chan and do your best!"

Kakashi saw something shift in Naruto's eyes that still held his own. "Of course Sensei." There was something challenging in the gaki's tone. "Why would you think otherwise."

Kakashi smirked beneath his mask. Oh yes, the brat had caught on quickly as expected.

"Well then, ja-ne! I'll see you kids later, that's all for today!"

Before they could do or say anything, Kakashi vanished in a swirl of leaves.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura turned to her crush, only to see him leaving, not paying any attention to anyone but himself. Sakura would have gone after him, but she remembered that Naruto existed as well. When she turned to him, he too was gone, as in no where in sight. Frowning at her wayward teammates, Sakura decided to show Ino-Buta her nomination slip. Oh she was going to be sooooo jealous!

* * *

"Mendouske." Shikamaru muttered as he watched Naruto slurp down bowl after bowl of ramen. He knew his best friend loved the stuff, but seriously, it was like he _breathed_ the noodles in!

On his other side, Lee was doing the same, but at a slower pace. Naruto had gotten Lee hooked on to his favorite food as well, and now Shikamaru had to contend with _two_ ramen freaks.

"Naruto!"

The blond stopped eating for a second to give Shikamaru a withering look that would have made any ordinary person shiver if it weren't for the smattering of ramen all over his face.

"You saw her, didn't you?" Shikamaru's tone held a tone of desperation in it that made Naruto put down his bowl and wipe his mouth.

"She's perfectly fine, Shikamaru." Naruto patted him on the head. "I know you love her and all, but have some patience bro. After all, you can't go up to her and say, _hey, I'm your future husband. Come to my room so we can make tons of babies_." Naruto deadpanned, ignoring the spluttering from Lee and Shikamaru.

"_Aho!"_ Shikamaru's face was flushed. "That's not what I was going to do!"

"But you thought about it." Naruto waggled his eyebrows lecherously at the Nara.

"Sh...shut up!"

"Your face tells me everything, Shika." Naruto smirked. His eyes softened as he remembered how Shika and Temari were in the future. They were the embodiment of a loving young couple, even during the war. The little glances, the touches, everything, it made Naruto burst with happiness, and have infinite bouts of jealousy as well.

Of course, the course of love never runs smoothly.

Just getting them to admit their feelings took a _very_ long time. Both were hardheaded and stubborn after all. Surprisingly enough, it had been Shikamaru who had been forced (by Chouji and Naruto) to "talk" to Temari about what was (or was not) going on between them.

And then...things just took off.

Both Naruto and Gaara had given Shikamaru the overprotective little brother talk, while Kankuro had been sharpening kunais whilst threatening to castrate Shikamaru with them if he hurt his sister in any way.

Some time before the war, they had gotten married in a very private ceremony.

And then the war had taken away all chances of Shikamaru's happiness.

He deserved this, deserved Temari, deserved his child.

"Ne Shika-kun." Lee gazed dreamily at Ayame who was serving another customer.

"Nani?"

"Maybe after Naruto finally snags Hinata-chan we could go on a triple date."

It was Naruto's turn to choke on his ramen and glare at his friends.

"Your face tells me everything Ruto." Shikamaru mocked, chuckling gleefully at his friend's red visage.

"Anyway..." Naruto attempted to regain some authority. "Chunin Exams."

The mood tensed quickly.

"We've all been nominated, just like last time." Lee pointed out.

"Orochimaru is here, or will be here soon, which means that the current Kazekage is dead already." Shikamaru added.

"And this means that Suna will invade Konoha once more." Naruto concluded grimly.

"But..." Shikamaru began with a small grin. "We can stop any real damage from happening."

"Who was the first death...besides the Kazekage?" Lee asked, scratching his cheek.

"Hayate!" Naruto said after a period of silence. "Gekko Hayate-san. He was killed by Baki-san if I'm not mistaken. Yugao-senpai was talking about it during the war. She and him...they were engaged."

"I know him." Lee said slowly. "He uses swords and Kage Bunshin. Tenten wants to ask him about his technique all the time."

"He was one of the proctors during the exam." Shikamaru recalled. "The sickly one with the cough."

"_Mikazuki no Mai_. Dance of the Crescent Moon. That's his signature technique." Lee added. "If we can stop his death, then we've changed the future."

"He was killed after the preliminaries, so we should shadow him closely after that time. If I remember correctly, Genma-sepai became the proctor for the finals." Naruto stated tersely. "And guys, think about it, if Hayate-san was killed, then-"

"Then he had information about the Invasion that Oto and Suna didn't want the Sandaime to know." Shikamaru finished sadly. "It makes sense."

"Ara!" Ayame's voice broke them out of their stupor and caused Lee to blush rather brightly. "Don't look so sad boys. Look! More Ramen!"

Naruto and Lee looked delighted, though Naruto was happy to see the ramen and Lee was happy to see Ayame. Shikamaru just leaned his cheek against his palm and shook his head.

Sometimes, he really didn't understand those two...

* * *

Hiruzen gazed out of his window, looking out at the village at night. It was beautiful, so peaceful. He wondered if this peace was simply an illusion, and that at any moment, this illusion would break, and they would be back to the times of the Third Shinobi World War.

This afternoon, when little Konohamaru had come rushing in, telling a tale of how _Naruto-nii_ had saved him from two _bakemonos_, he thought the boy was just exaggerating. But upon further prodding, it seemed as though Naruto had shielded the child both from Sakura, and three Suna genins, the children of the Kazekage.

How fitting. The son of the Fourth, saving the grandson of the third, from the children of the Fourth Kazekage.

Even Konohamaru had said that Naruto-nii had changed, that he seemed more _cool_ and _awesome_ in the words of his grandson.

It disturbed him that the Suna genin would raise a hand on a small child, and if Naruto wasn't there, he didn't know what would have happened.

Sarutobi saw a small breeze ruffle the shadowy treetops and couldn't help but shiver. Even the wind knew that a change was coming.

But was this change good, or bad?

* * *

"Orochimaru-sama." The three sound genin knelt before their master.

"Ku ku ku." The Sannin smirked, licking his lips with an abnormally long tongue. "What news do you bring?"

"Uchiha Sasuke has awakened his Sharingan." One genin said in a monotonous voice.

"His Jonin Sensei is Hatake Kakashi." Another one added in the same tone.

"He spars on his own everyday from the hours of three to six when not on duty." The last genin, a girl, finished.

"Did you hear that, Kabuto-kun?"

From the corner, glasses glinted in the dull lighting. "Hai, Orochimaru-sama." Cruel lips twisted into a grin.

_Soon Uchiha Sasuke. Soon, you will give me what your noble brother never could, and never would. Your eyes._

* * *

_Genki desu-ka?: _Are you alright?

_Gomenasai okaa-sama: _Sorry, mother

_Futari domo:_ You two

_Sekai: _World

_Ninken: _Ninja Dogs

_Hime-sama:_ Princess

_Ayashi: _Suspicious

_Konoha Senpu: _Leaf Whirlwind

_Kinjutsu: _Forbidden Technique

_Omoshiro: _Interesting/Amusing

_Onegai: _Please

_Aniki: _Big Bro (Slang)

_Aho_: Idiot


	5. The Start of the Exams

**Again, another great response to the last chapter! SO I've taken into account what you've said and eased up on the Japanese...and fixed the spelling of Mendokuse...whoops...**

**With that being said, all jutsus will be in Japanese because I feel that it is appropriate. Any Japanese will be translated at the bottom.**

**Anyway, people are still saying how much they love Lee! I agree with them wholeheartedly. He, I think, has a darker side to the happy-go-lucky personality that he portrays, just like Naruto. I'm glad you're liking the familial bond, because let's face it: when those three are the last survivors, they are anything if not family. They've really only got each other to rely on because they know what's going to happen, and it's up to them to stop it.**

**Enough of me talking! Please enjoy the fifth installment of _A Wrinkle in Time..._**

* * *

Umino Iruka was not a violent man. He was as composed and playful as his namesake - a dolphin. But when he was provoked, he was a force to be reckoned with. He knew Naruto, and he knew the kid's nature. No matter what Kakashi said, Iruka didn't think that Naruto was anywhere close to being ready to take the exams. Kids _died_ there! He wasn't about to let his favorite genin go the same way as some of his classmates just because he let the Copy Ninja have his way.

He was sure if he just proved to the older shinobi that Naruto couldn't defend himself, then Hatake would relent and withdraw his team. After all, Naruto's weakness in the Academy was taijutsu...and genjutsu...and ninjutsu (except for that ridiculously perverted technique and _Kage Bunshin_).

Which is why, when he found himself being flipped over, and landing on the floor of Naruto's apartment with a loud_ thud_, he finally understood why Hatake had been so adamant to say that Naruto had changed.

"Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked in the dark, his voice carrying a slight slur from sleep. "What are you doing on the floor?"

Iruka gaped at the boy in the darkness. How had Naruto known who he was? Wasn't he supposed to be anonymous? He had even masked his chakra! When the kid flipped on the lights, he blinked at the sudden change and then at Naruto himself.

"N...Naruto!"

The boy widened his eyes in realization and muttered something along the lines of _not again_ before helping his first sensei to an upright position.

"Sorry Iruka-sensei! You startled me there!" Naruto bowed his head down to the older man in a submissive pose that made Iruka quickly grab Naruto's shoulders so that he could look the boy in the eye.

Naruto was berating himself for having such quick reflexes.

Oh yes, what a curse that was to have...

"_What the hell_" The blond boy exclaimed, watching concernedly as the older man rubbed his sore backside. "Are you alright?"

Iruka could only stare at Naruto as he made him sit on his rickety old bed. His stare extended to the rest of the room as well, which looked much cleaner than it had in years.

"Naruto." Iruka murmured. "I'm sorry for scaring you." He truly meant it. That boy...he could really flip someone...

Those piercing blue eyes narrowed as Iruka practically saw the gears churning in the boy's head.

Naruto sighed in exasperation, rubbing his blond spikes in a weary motion. He was wondering when Iruka would come to test him, having done this in the prior timeline as well. He just didn't expect him to do it now...at three in the morning. "No, I'm sorry, sensei. It was an accident."

Iruka winced at the heat in his back. All he wanted to do was wake Naruto up and then tell him how stupid he was for letting an enemy through and how he wasn't able to fight back. Admittedly, he did have to pick a few locks to get in the house, but he had gotten in nonetheless. Just when he was about to touch the kid on the shoulder, a hand had come out of nowhere and had propelled him to the floor.

"I'll get you an icepack." Naruto murmured quietly, leaving his sensei with his own thoughts.

Was this what Kakashi meant when he said that Naruto had changed, that Naruto was talented, that he was smart? Judging by the very real pain in his back, he would have to agree with Hatake at this moment.

Within seconds, Naruto was back, giving Iruka the icepack and taking a seat in the spare chair in the room. He observed his sensei with masked affection. The first time he had seen Iruka after they had arrived in the past, was five days after their landing. It had taken all of Naruto's willpower not to cling to the man and sob in his Chunin vest. Iruka, the man who had first acknowledged Naruto as a ninja, who had considered Naruto a brother to him, who had died protecting him. Once again, he was alive, and Naruto was going to do everything possible to keep it that way.

"Um...sorry." Naruto said softly causing Iruka to smile.

"That's the third time you've said sorry to me, Naruto. But it's me who should be saying sorr-"

"It's okay, Iruka-sensei." Naruto smiled at the man causing Iruka's eyes to widen. It was so familiar. That smile...he had seen it on the face of the Yondaime...

"Naruto..."

"I get it sensei, trust me, I really do." Surprisingly, Iruka didn't doubt Naruto. The boy's eyes told him the truth. "You're worried that Kakashi-sensei was too quick in nominating us, _ne_?"

Iruka masked his surprise quite well. He was never this quick on the uptake. Kakashi may have been right about Naruto, he must have changed quite a bit. "Naruto, how did you know?"

That caused Naruto to snort. Well, he couldn't say _because you've done this before_ now could he? So he opted for the next best option. "Because like it or not, I know you, maybe better than you think." He looked down, a small frown on his face. "The truth is sensei, I'm not sure if Kakashi-sensei did the right thing."

That simple admission shocked Iruka to the core. Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto, the boy who shouted he wanted to be Hokage 24/7, was doubting if his sensei did the right thing in giving them a chance to advance? "Why?" Iruka wanted to know.

Naruto took a deep breath and looked at Iruka, the one man besides his fellow time travelers that he could trust with everything. "Because as a team, we suck." That was the cold reality of it all.

The deadpan voice caused Iruka to choke. He had never heard such a tone coming from Naruto. It was so blunt, so void of emotion, so unlike Naruto! "Naruto-"

"No sensei, I'm not exaggerating. We truly are not a good team." They really weren't. Naruto didn't realize just how much his team had fallen apart after the Wave mission, both in his timeline and this one. "We don't work well together, Sasuke barely listens to what anyone says, Sakura only listens to what Sasuke says, and Kakashi-sensei tries to be the moderator, but it never works. We are so_...so_..." He trailed off, not finding the proper word.

"Kakashi said that you all were ready." Iruka said cautiously. Naruto never talked this way, ever. Maybe this was what he was like in the dead of morning, half asleep and not understanding what he was saying.

"Kakashi-sensei probably never said that." Naruto refuted firmly. "I know pretty well him too." He tapped the side of his nose and smiled softly.

Iruka let out a breath. Well, this was a change. A very big change. Naruto seemed so much calmer, mature...much more shinobi-like. It was kind of scary actually. "You're right. He didn't. In fact, throughout his little speech, he only really referred to you."

Naruto was slightly taken aback before he relaxed. Had Kakashi been this focused on him in the previous timeline as well? "Really? I wonder why..." He looked out his window to see a dark sky. "I've changed, sensei. Kakashi-sensei knows this, I know this, the Hokage knows this."

Iruka tensed minutely. Naruto was admitting this?

"Don't worry." Naruto chuckled. That laugh...it was oddly similar to Kakashi's, Iruka thought. How strange. A smile like the Yondaime's, and a laugh like the Yondaime's prized student... "I...Wave, Wave made me realize a lot of things. I can't act the way I used to. I can't hide everything under a smiley face. This life, it's harsh. Zabuza, Haku-san, they didn't have to die, they were _good_ in their own way, but they did. And that really pissed me off. The world that we live in, is cruel and unforgiving."

"Naruto..." Iruka breathed. How had he not recognized this shift within the boy? Sure, he knew how much Wave had changed the boy, Naruto had come to him the day after they had come back and told him everything. But all that Naruto was saying, that he was doing, it reminded Iruka of his own father - a hardened shinobi who had seen war. The Wave mission might have opened Naruto's eyes, but it shouldn't have made him sound like a god forsaken veteran.

"And then you factor the whole 'Kyuubi' thing." Naruto shot a glance at his gut, where Kurama was still sleeping. "_Mendokuse _however, that's my life." He nearly blanched at his own tone. Lee was right, Shikamaru was rubbing off on him.

After a moment of silence, the boy chuckled ruefully. "I still have a couple more hours before I have to get up Sensei. You're welcome to stay here. I can take the couch."

Iruka shook his head violently. Not that he was opposed to spending some more time with his pupil, but he couldn't impose like this, not when he had misjudged Naruto this much. "It's alright, Naruto. I just wanted to test you, and you passed with flying colors." He waved goodbye. "Again, sorry for disturbing your sleep!" In the next instant, all that was left of Iruka was a puff of smoke.

Naruto watched as the smoke disappeared slowly, a fond expression settling on his face. Though his sleep had been disturbed, it felt nice that someone cared enough to come check up on him.

That's Iruka-sensei for you...

* * *

"Naruto..." Lee nudged his best friend in ribs gently, pointing to Shikamaru who was wearing a silly little expression on his face.

Both of them stifled laughs as they stared at the Nara. They were in public after all, and they couldn't make fun of their friend like this.

"He's finally seen her then." Naruto muttered softly.

It had been four days since the _Suna Kyodai_ had arrived in Konoha. Ever since then, Shikamaru had sort of been stalking Temari, trying to get a glimpse of her. But they were as elusive as a single grain of sand and couldn't be found...until today it seemed.

"Shi-ka-ma-ru!" Naruto circled his friend casually, fully aware of the odd looks he was getting. "Well?" He crossed his arms over his chest expectantly, looking like a father waiting for his son to tell him the big news.

"It's a miracle." Shikamaru's voice held a healthy dose of nostalgia and longing that made Lee and Naruto look at him sadly.

"Time travel _is_ a miraculous and wondrous thing." Lee stated sagely.

"Did you actually talk to her?" Naruto asked, pretty sure he knew what the answer was.

"Nope!" Yes, that cheery voice was typical of the Shikamaru of the future, before the war. It was the tone he used whenever Temari was present.

"So you stalked her?"

Shikamaru frowned. "Stalked is a bit of an overstatement...I was just...looking for her. And then when I found her, I couldn't really let her go, now could I?"

"So you stalked her." This time, it was a fact, not a question.

The Nara rubbed his head sheepishly. "Can you blame me?"

Lee sighed slightly. "No, no we can't. But if she saw you, then she would have been incredibly cautious and wary of you."

"Which is why I used the rooftops."

"Of course you did." Naruto smiled slightly. When it came to those he loved, Shikamaru lost some of that Nara 'charm' of aloofness and became engrossed in his emotions. It was a good and bad thing.

"She didn't meet with anyone suspicious!" Shikamaru added hastily. "From what I know of the invasion, Suna was only told to attack Konoha _after_ the finals. Those are their orders."

"I know. Gaara told me the same thing when we rescued him all those years back." Naruto scratched his cheek thoughtfully. "While I would love to get those three plus Baki-san on our side right away, we can't. They're going to have to learn about the Kazekage, their _father, _the hard way. Otherwise, they won't know just how much Orochimaru-teme used them."

The other two didn't refute Naruto because they knew he was right, however, they couldn't completely agree with him as well. Convincing Suna meant showing them proof, proof which they didn't have. And they weren't exactly going to reveal their little time traveling secret, so letting things play out was their best option.

"How goes "Operation Hayate?" Shikamaru asked Naruto.

Operation Hayate was basically just a plan as to how to save the man, thus stopping the first casualty of war and changing perhaps a vital part of the future. Naruto, being the most adept at stealth out of all of them, would in essence, follow him as much as he could, learn of his habits, where he went for fun, who he spent time with, and so on. This was real stalking, or as the shinobi world called it, _reconnaissance_.

Naruto's eyes sharpened. "Fine. Hayate-san meets with Yugao-senpai a couple times a day. Because of his illness, he's a _tokubetsu jonin, _and is generally stationed in or around the village for protection. He likes going to that dango place that Anko-san likes, and it appears as though the two of them are good friends. He doesn't have any students, but he does teach Yugao-senpai the basics of _Mikazuki no __Mai. _Yesterday, he and all the other Chunin/Jonin went over to the bar and drank a bit. Overall, he leads a pretty boring existence for a shinobi."

"Although we know he dies after the preliminaries, we can't let our guard down. Something may have changed already, and Hayate-san may have overheard something sooner than expected. From tonight onwards, the three of us will take turns in patrolling Konoha at night, making sure that Hayate-san is safe. After the preliminaries, if everything goes to plan and Hayate-san is still alive, we go every night together...just in case." Shikamaru made sure the others understood before nodding and looking away.

"Besides that, our first hurdle will be dealing with all the other genins." Lee mused out loud, cringing as he recollected what he had done when he had first met Team Seven.

"Please do not wink at Sakura and blow her kisses." Naruto pinched his forehead, shivering at the memory. "I swear I saw_ hearts_ coming at her!"

"Hai, hai." Lee muttered sheepishly. He had no intention of doing that, especially since he had another flower on his mind...

"So first we have Ibiki's little winnowing down test, then we have the forest of death, then the preliminaries, then one month of preparation till the invasion." Shikamaru clenched his fists. It sounded like nothing, but it was quite nerve-wracking. "The forest of death..."

"I know." Lee said quietly. That was when Sasuke had been bitten, when everything had changed.

"We don't even know if we can stop it." Shikamaru muttered angrily.

"We just have to try our best." Lee said morosely. "But what if our best just isn't good enough?..."

"Enough." Naruto snapped, his voice low yet powerful. The other two recognized that voice instantly. This wasn't Naruto the twelve year old talking, this was their _Hokage_ who was giving them an order. They stood taller, and closed their mouths immediately.

"Second guessing will get us no where." Naruto continued, his tone as steely as the glint in his eyes. "Kurama told me that this was a chance to undo the wrong done. A chance to give us the future we _deserve_. Sasuke...Sasuke is a pain, but we must not doubt ourselves or our action." He took a deep breath, pinning his subordinates with a challenging glare. "Understood?"

"Hai, Hokage-"

Naruto cut them off by clamping his hands over their mouths. "Baka! Don't say stuff like that in the open! What if someone else heard that?" Taking deep breaths, he looked at their amused faces with annoyance. "On the other hand though...everything else that we just said could have been heard too, so let's leave it at that."

Shikamaru slung an arm across Naruto's shoulders. The boy, who had once been quite short, had grown an inch over the past couple weeks, and filled out slightly. It was amazing what proper nutrition could do. That's why Naruto had become so tall over his training trip. The cheapest food Naruto could get was ramen along with some occasional vegetables. When his mother had seen just how scrawny Naruto was, she mothered him like crazy, force feeding him veggies and meat to make him eat a healthy and balanced diet.

Lee scowled darkly at those who dared glare at Naruto. How had Naruto lived like this? This hate...it would have driven anyone crazy, and it did do that to Gaara. But that's what made Naruto so special. He didn't let it get to him, he simply shrugged it of and redirected the hate that he no doubt held towards the villagers through pranks. At least then they would acknowledge his presence...

Naruto simply accepted the fact that his two best friends were going to act like sullen bodyguards and not let him share his burden alone. That brought a smile, a true smile, to his face. He really could get used to this new life, no matter what turns it took.

* * *

_Two weeks later..._

Shikaku watched as Yoshino ruffled Lee's hair, patted Naruto on the cheek, and swatted Shikamaru gently on the head. It had been a month since Shikaku and the rest of the Nara Clan had first met Naruto and Lee...officially.

And now, looking at how his wife interacted with those two, how Shikamaru acted in their presence, it was like the two other genin had been living with them all along.

Initially, he had invited the Kyuubi host and Lee to learn more about them and their friendship with Shikamaru which began with these mysterious training sessions. However, it had turned into a sort of bonding experience for all of them. It had been quite some time since non-Nara, Akimichi, or Yamanaka shinobi had interacted so freely with his Clan.

Naruto and Lee were orphans. They lived alone, and no one checked up on them too often. Shikamaru had once confided in him that he was worried about Naruto, and his lifestyle. The changes in Naruto and even Lee to an extent were visible. Naruto was taller, his hair fell over his eyes making him look more like Minato. Lee had a healthy glow to his skin, and he had mellowed down slightly. The kids were practically living with the Naras, Naruto only going back to his apartment to tend to his plants and sleep on occasion. Lee was the same, coordinating his schedule so that he and Naruto would stay over with the Naras at the same time for most of the week. Never once did Shikamaru complain when the two showed up unannounced one night at midnight. His boy just yawned at led the other two to his room.

Whenever those three came home, (and indeed, he would consider this place those kids' home as well) banged and bruised, Yoshino fussed over them to the point of absolute exasperation from all of them. Shikaku had wanted to confront them, because the injuries that they sustained, at least those on Shikamaru and Naruto were Chakra burns. This meant that they were experimenting with something potentially dangerous.

But then he had overheard Naruto telling the other two that they were progressing nicely, and that within some time, they would be in decent shape for the Chunin Exams. Shikaku honestly had no idea what to make of this conversation. He could deduce that their training was harsh and rigorous, probably incorporating their elements as well. His son was probably lightning, and Naruto...Naruto could either be water because of Kushina, fire because of the Fox, or wind, just like his father. More likely than not, he was wind, with a minor affinity to fire.

Today was the day they set out for the Chunin Exams. Ever since the three of them had come had come back carrying identical slips, all they thought about was training. The boys had really outdone themselves in the past two weeks. When they weren't out on missions, they were in the back of the complex, practicing taijutsu, and some ninjutsu.

The deer had been very happy when Naruto had used a very light version of _Suiton: Mizu Tatsumaki _to create a small tornado of water that kept the deer and plants hydrated.

But when Shikamaru had decided to use a _Raiton_ jutsu in conjunction with Naruto's water jutsu, they had almost destroyed the forest if it hadn't been for Naruto's shadow clones which countered the jutsu.

That's when Yoshino had told both of them that ninjutsu was strictly forbidden in the backyard.

Still though, Shikaku was surprised that both of them were using ninjutsu like this. He was sure that no other genins, besides maybe the Uchiha were using elemental attacks. Shikamaru had never shown any aptitude or interest for the elemental jutsus. That just made him more curious as to where those two were learning these techniques.

And then there was Lee with his incredible taijutsu. When Shikamaru had ordered Lee to drop his weights one day, Shikaku certainly didn't expect the crater that had formed in the field, nor did he expect this gaki to take Gai's training to another level. Underneath the green-spandex, bowl cut, and layers of unending _youth_, that kid was an absolute _genius_ in taijutsu. His movements, dare Shikaku say it, very well could rival Gai.

In fact, they were all geniuses in their own right, with Shikamaru being the obvious one.

Which is why Shikaku was completely comfortable in letting them go into the exams. He had no doubt that they would be able to succeed.

"See you soon, Shikaku-san!" Lee and Naruto chorused in unison, identical wide smiles on their face. Shikamaru gave him a small grin and a salute. "See you soon, oyaji."

The elder Nara's lips twitched upwards ever so slightly as he waved back. Yoshino was at his side in the next instant, and the two of them watched as the children vanished into the distance.

"Those kids...they'll do great things one day." His wife murmured softly before heading back into the house.

Shikaku took one last look at the kids' retreating figures and couldn't help but agree.

_Ne Minato, I wonder if you could see your son now..._

* * *

"Alright men." Naruto barked once they were out of the Nara property.

"Today's the day." Lee said somberly, though there was amusement on his face.

"That we rise against our enemies." Shikamaru added with a sly grin.

"Crush their spirits."

"Stomp on their toes."

"And persevere."

"So that we strike fear into those who dare oppose Konoha and this Alliance."

"Who dare oppose us and our cause!"

Shikamaru and Lee had heard this speech numerous times. It was Naruto's favorite one to deliver before an important battle was about to take place. They were taking immense pleasure at the tick developing in their Hokage's temple.

"Shut up." Naruto gritted his teeth. His subordinates were too cheeky...

Shikamaru's face became serious. "We get it, Hokage-sama. We really do."

"Today, what will happen over the course of the next few days, over the course of this month, will lay the foundation for the future that we came back to save, Naruto." Lee said, his face uncharacteristically...un-youthful.

"I know you do!" Naruto let out a frustrated groan. "It's just that these exams, people are going to see..."

"So let them!" Shikamaru stated forcefully. "Yeah, they'll see how much we've progressed. Us, the dead lasts of our classes, are, and I can say this with utter confidence, the strongest Shinobi that the Leaf will have. One of us here becomes Hokage after all." He tousled Naruto's spiky hair casually, chuckling at the boy's pout.

Naruto straightened, casually pushing Shikamaru away from him, sticking out his tongue in a very un-Hokage-esque manor. "Tch. _Mendokuse_." Naruto paused and looked his friend in the eye. "That's what you were going to say, right?" Before Shikamaru had a chance to respond, Naruto shook his head. "No, I _know_ that's what you were going to say. But for the next couple of months, keep your _mendokuses_ to a minimum because this entire Exam is going to be incredibly troublesome."

"Naruto..."

"I already know that, baka." Shikamaru frowned and turned away. "Don't give me that speech. But before _you_ say anything else, look where we are."

"Huh?" Lee observed their surroundings, letting out a long breath. "Here again, ne?" In front of them was the memorial stone. One bad habit of Kakashi's that they had picked up during the war was staring at this thing for so long and getting lost in the memories. They could all finally understand why Kakashi was so late all the time.

"It's almost time to meet our teams." Naruto announced quietly after some moments of silence. "Let's go." He, nor his brothers in combat, needed to be reminded of what might lay ahead should they fail.

Without a second glance, the three vanished from sight, not noticing the startled violet eyes of one Uzuki Yugao...

* * *

"Mou, Lee!" Tenten groaned, watching her over-enthusiastic teammate take in the testing sight with wide eyes. "Stop bouncing around so much!" Indeed, the spandex-clad boy was darting from here to there, constantly on the balls of his feet.

Neji, who usually ignored his teammate's oddities found himself oddly amused at the looks on the other genin's faces, especially the genins from different countries. Lee might be too loud, too hyper, and over all just plain annoying, but there was no doubt that he was one of the strongest genin in this competition. Neji had learned early on that for Lee, not having any ninjutsu or genjutsu was not a detriment, but an asset.

The Hyuuga smirked ever so slightly as more and more genin teams inched away from them, taking in his cold stare, Lee's cries of 'youth', and Tenten's intimidating weapons.

Good.

These insects needed to learn who was the Alpha here.

* * *

"Chouji!" Ino whacked her rotund friend on the head. The poor boy winced and clutched the aching appendage. "Stop eating! You're making us look bad!"

Ever since Shikamaru met with his team, he had been dealing with an overly anxious girl and boy, who both met their anxiousness with different approaches. Just like Sakura, Ino had a violent streak, one that she had used against Sai many times in the future. That was her stress reliever...and so was sex...but Shikamaru would take that one detail that Sai had shared with him in the name of 'male bonding' to the grave. Naruto was right, everything here was troublesome.

"Ino. Chouji needs to eat in order to keep his metabolism steady. You know about his clan. If they don't eat, then they can't do their techniques, and we can't do any combo jutsus." The Nara stated wisely, living up to his reputation as a genius.

The blonde girl stopped and looked at the Akimichi, a red tinge creeping on her cheeks. Of course she knew that! She never told Chouji to stop eating...so then why now?

"It's alright, Ino-chan." Chouji smiled at her. "We're all a bit nervous, even Shikamaru! Look how he's tapping his arm!" He pointed to the lazy genin's finger which was drumming a steady beat on his forearm. Chouji knew Shikamaru well. That was the Nara's sign of anxiety.

Shikamaru ignored what his young friends were saying and stared at the building in front of him with a slight amount of trepidation. It had been ten years since he had been here, ten years since the seeds of war had been planted in this very building. Even the Hokage said that this competition was an excuse for war.

He turned around, seeing that Ino was still apologizing for hitting Chouji, and the other boy was trying to placate her. His eyes hardened, as did his heart. Though he would have liked to smile at them, he couldn't. Not when he knew how tough this would be.

"You two!"

Ino and Chouji unconsciously straightened at the authoritative tone in the Nara's voice.

"Come on. We have to go to the third floor." Shikamaru muttered, gesturing for them to follow him with a somber expression.

"Since when did Shikamaru get so serious?" Ino asked Chouji as the two of them remained three steps behind from their 'team leader'.

"Dunno." He threw some more chips in his mouth. "But it's good that he's as worried as we are."

"Yeah..." Ino stared at her friend's back in slight concern. She had known Shikamaru for too long. He never showed this much overt emotions on his face except when he was annoyed. She glanced at the building they were entering. What about this place had arguably the smartest genin in Konoha so rankled?

* * *

Naruto winced as he saw the furious expression on Sakura's face as a foreign genin commented on her eccentric hair color. The girl seriously looked like she could kill. Luckily, Naruto knew she wasn't capable of this feat...yet.

Sasuke remained as stoic as ever, emitting his _cool_ vibes that were having an effect on some of the female genin which raised Sakura's temper through the roof.

Naruto, the most stable genin (and that was saying something) of them all could only shake his head and seriously wonder why Kakashi would nominate a team like them. He sincerely hoped that Kakashi didn't think that they would work together because they were forced into a life threatening situation, but knowing that man, that was probably the reason why.

They were already at the Chunin Exam testing sight, the only thing left to do was go in. However, Sasuke had stopped for an odd reason, which of course caused Sakura to stop, and Naruto was outnumbered 2-1 so he _had_ to stop.

"Let's go." Sasuke grumbled, not even looking at the other two.

Naruto clapped his hands over his ears as Sakura squealed in agreement and quickly followed after Sasuke. The sight made Naruto scowl without realizing it. Sakura still hadn't realized that Sasuke was not "all that", and she probably wouldn't until Sasuke would leave. And he would leave. Naruto knew the Uchiha quite well. Konoha held no appeal to Sasuke, especially not when he was being offered seemingly unlimited power from Orochimaru and Madara later on.

"Nice team you've got there."

The future Hokage looked up to see a dark haired kunoichi that he didn't know from Kumo.

Wait...Kumo? Did that mean that A oji-san and Bee oji-san were hear as well? When had that happened? No...this wasn't a Kumo nin. If he focused enough, then he could feel the girl's chakra signature. It felt...like he had known her, and yes, it was a her, a her with Jonin level reserves. This was a Konoha nin, one that he was familiar with, who was trying to test him..._again_.

Naruto masked his surprise under a frown. "We have our faults...but no team doesn't." To emphasize his point, he pointed to two Kumo genin, boys, who could only be her teammates...as well as other Konoha nin. One could practically see the lightning bolts shooting from their eyes.

The _henged_ jonin just groaned at her teammates and shot Naruto an apologetic smile that he knew to be completely fake. "I suppose you're right." She held her hand out. "I'm Toshiko, Kaminari Toshiko."

Naruto resisted the urge to scowl. _Kaminari? Lightning?_ Honestly, did this jonin think he would make the quite terrible pun she was trying to make.

"Uzumaki Naruto." He grudgingly shook the girl/woman's hand noticing the way her hand blurred slightly revealing the effects of a liquid like henge. However, he was told in the future that he was the only one capable of making a solid henge, and that normal henges looked like this.

"And please," The boy sounded particularly weary now as he lowered his voice so others wouldn't hear. "I don't know if Iruka-sensei, or Kakashi-sensei, or even the Hokage sent you, but if you want to evaluate our team, then let the Chunin exams do that, not some random Konoha Jonin."

Before the kunoichi could even say another word, the blonde was gone, presumably disappeared into the building.

The disguised kunoichi signaled her 'teammates' to stop looking annoyed at each other. Glancing around the empty yard, she nodded at them, and placed her hands in the _hitsuji_ seal that would break the henge.

Uzuki Yugao walked over to the newly revealed Kotetsu and Izumo, the _Eternal Chunin_ of Konoha who would make Jonin pretty easily if they put any effort into training for it.

"He recognized you relatively quickly, Yugao-senpai." Izumo said, staring at the place where Uzumaki had gone into. "He knew you were a Jonin from Konoha."

Yugao flipped her violet hair with interest. "Uzumaki Naruto...such an odd kid, not at all what I was expecting. We'll have to see what he does next." Yugao had a slight smile on her face as she walked back towards the village. That gaki was so much like Kushina-senpai that it hurt. She, like Kakashi, had been quite close to the Namikaze/Uzumaki couple, and was on Naruto's ANBU guard.

She would have to wait and watch the movements of this kid very closely. She should have been there for the boy, but buried herself in her duty instead. Now would probably be a good time to make up for the twelve years that she had missed out on. After all, it would be what Kushina-senpai wanted.

* * *

Sasuke and Sakura were only slightly ahead of him as Naruto caught up with them. They didn't seem to notice his absence or didn't care. Either way, it irked him, especially the way Sakura nearly ignored him. Had it really taken Sasuke almost killing him in order for her to see Naruto as Naruto, and not some annoyance?

If so, then Naruto had no intention of Sasuke getting anywhere close to putting a _Chidori_ through his chest. If that meant sacrificing his relationship with Sakura...

He shook his head to clear it of these unwanted thoughts. Naruto knew that his actions towards Sasuke was going to create a shift in Sakura's view towards him, but if it meant saving her life, and not destroying his, then so be it.

"Oi _dobe_!" Sasuke's voice brought him out of his stupor. "Don't look like you're going to start crying, the test hasn't even started yet."

Naruto recognized there wasn't any real malice behind the Uchiha's words, yet he couldn't help but growl, causing those nearest to him to back away ever so slightly. He didn't know if it was because he knew that an invasion was going to take place, or the incident with the henged Jonin, but Naruto was feeling _very_ pissed off, and Sasuke's casual remarks were not making it better.

Still though, he reigned in his emotion and walked closer to his teams, straying slightly behind Sakura so he could observe those in front of him and around him with ease. Up ahead, he could see Gaara's teal eyes boring into him, a massive scowl on the Suna jinchuuriki's face. Wisely, he kept his head down and didn't so much as flinch when sand started trickling down Gaara's gourd towards him. He knew that his brother by circumstance was doing this as a warning, a warning to back off and learn who was in charge here. Naruto refused to take the bait.

Naruto also knew what was coming as they walked up the stairs. First, there would be a genjutsu to go through, and then there was the main test: acting 'normal' in the presence of Lee and Shikamaru when he knew that at least his sensei if not more people would be scrutinizing him closely. Everything that came after would come. They had to get through this hurdle first.

He could already hear the murmurs coming from the second floor. No doubt, Izumo-senpai and Kotetsu-senpai were already laying the genjutstu out, confusing the confusable genin and having a blast. Naruto had to admit, coming to this exam with fresh eyes gave him a significant advantage, but it also made him reflect on all of his flaws, genjutsu being one of them.

Hopefully, Lee and Shikamaru's teams wouldn't be as stupid as last time, and -

"Let us through!" Kiba's voice stopped Naruto's thoughts in their track.

Team Eight was standing a few feet ahead of them with Kiba in the front, assuming the role of Alpha. Naruto gulped slightly at the sight of a twelve year old Hinata, the foundation for the badass woman he knew in the future, the woman who _loved_ him. While he knew he would have to face her eventually, he really didn't want now to be the time.

Shino was as stoic as ever, his jacket covering his emotions well. But Naruto could detect the slight annoyance in the boy as Kiba kept on going on and on.

Naruto couldn't help but smile nostalgically at seeing all of them. They were his friends, and they had died fighting to defend their world.

"Absolutely not!" Kotetsu shook his head adamantly, crossing his arms in a menacing posture. By now, a couple more teams from various countries had gathered around the door that supposedly was on the third floor.

"Yeah! Let us in!" Someone cried from the back.

"Move it!"

"Hurry up!"

Naruto saw Sasuke gaze intently at the door, no doubt seeing the slightly blurry edges around the sign that said "Third Floor" on it. Before the boy could speak, Naruto grabbed his arm and shook his head. Last time, Sasuke had blurted out the truth about the genjutsu due to his inflated head, letting more teams pass than they should have. If Naruto could stop that now, then the competition would be lower.

"Don't, it's a test." The blond boy said, loudly enough so only his teammates could hear him. Sakura stared at him in confusion while Sasuke seemed to be contemplating what Naruto had said.

"So you noticed too, dobe?" The Uchiha crossed his arms over his chest, and examined the slightly shorter boy with slight surprise who simply nodded back.

"It's a genjutsu." Naruto glanced at Sakura who's eyes widened in recognition at the tell-tale signs of an illusion. "Don't say anything. This narrows down the competition and gives us a better chance at passing." Hopefully, giving Sasuke the incentive of eliminating the competition would have been an incentive for the boy to keep his mouth shut.

Naruto should have known better...

"Competition eh?" Sasuke surveyed the crowd, taking in the various weapons that the foreign shinobi wore, and gauged their strength. Some looked strong, looked like worthy opponents. Hn. Like he would listen to the dobe anyway, even if he was right...

"You really are stupid if you can't recognize a genjutu." Sasuke drawled, enjoying the surprised looks he was getting, and ignoring Naruto's facepalm.

"Nani?" Kiba exclaimed, looking from Sasuke back to the illusion ridden door. "What the..." Now that he thought about it, the door did look weird...

"So you noticed, eh?" Izumo asked, observing the Uchiha closely. The boy was good, but he shouldn't have said that out loud. It seemed as though the little fox by his side thought the same judging by Naruto's exasperated look.

"Hn. This was nothing." Sasuke brushed past Sakura and walked towards the next flight of stairs, causing Naruto to huff in annoyance and follow after his idiotically prideful teammate.

As they slowly walked up the stairs, Naruto was trying _very_ hard not to slaughter Sasuke where he stood. The boy was far too arrogant for his age, and his arrogance would lead to too many deaths. This led Naruto to wonder what exactly would happen if Sasuke died during the Chunin Exams?

No. That couldn't happen. Loathe though he was to admit it, Sasuke couldn't die, not yet at least. He played an important part in shaping nearly every genin to become the warriors of the future. Though it seemed as though Naruto and his two comrades were playing Kami, it was a necessary evil. Killing Sasuke would only encourage Orochimaru to pursue Itachi even more fervently, which would lead to his death even quicker than in the previous timeline. Itachi played a crucial role in helping Konoha.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura squealed, causing Naruto to look up and see the smiling face of his teacher.

"Yo, you three!" The man chirped cheerily at his three students. "It's good to see all of you here!"

"What do you mean, sensei? Don't we have to be here?" Sakura inquired, a puzzled look on her face.

Kakashi laughed, and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly before sobering. "Well, yes. But..." He trailed off, eyes locking with Naruto's who groaned inwardly. "Ne, Naruto-_chan_, why don't you explain?" Kakashi grinned at the pathetic expression on the blonde's face.

"I don't know sensei!" Naruto exclaimed with his typical "_what do you mean" _look.

"But I think you do." Kakashi retorted. He smirked when he saw the Naruto's defeated posture.

Naruto: 0. Kakashi: 1.

"Fine. It's because if we didn't show up as a team, we would have been disqualified, right?" The blond's tone changed immediately, as did his posture. His voice became a bit more deadpan, and his shoulders slumped. He looked utterly bored.

"Exactly!" Kakashi nearly yipped, snorting at the Nara-like posture that Naruto had. "See, once you think about something, you don't sound so stupid, ne Naruto?" Said boy was currently taking great interest in the wall behind his sensei.

"Teamwork is the most important thing in this exam." Kakashi disclosed seriously. "Work together, and you will succeed." His visible eye lingered on Sasuke the longest who shrugged and turned away from Kakashi slightly, no doubt hiding his embarrassment at being singled out.

The cyclops clapped his hands together. "Well then! Good luck, my kawaii genin! I'll be watching you guys carefully if you pass this test." _Especially you, Naruto_.

He watched as his genin went through the real testing door, hoping that they would take his advice as Kami's word. If they didn't...then Kami help them.

* * *

The room was packed with genin, both Foreign and Konoha nins lingering together, each team eying the other with distrust and malice. An excuse for war, that's what these exams were. However, not so far down the line, all of the nations here minus Sound would team up to destroy their enemy together. In just three years from now, they would be the Allied Shinobi Force.

Team Seven spotted the other Konoha teams, who were crowding around in a corner. Naruto caught Shikamaru's eye and nodded discretely, doing the same with Lee.

His eyes roved over Neji and Tenten with sadness. Neji, the first out of their age group to die, the man who had changed because of Naruto, who had become a man worth respecting. Everything, all of his potential was destroyed at the age of seventeen. Naruto swallowed the lump in his throat, watching as Lee gazed at Neji with remorse. This was what war had done. Everyone in this room had died, minus the three of them and Sasuke. But Sasuke didn't count.

"Looks like everyone is here." Kiba drawled unnecessarily, Akamaru barking with his companion in unison. "Even you, Naruto."

"Shut up dog breath." Naruto shot back, no real ire in his voice. "Of course I'd be here, where else would I go?"

Before Kiba could say anything else, another voice made itself known, a voice that had Naruto, Shikamaru, and Lee standing a bit taller and tensing minutely.

"Maa, maa, we're all Konoha genin here! Let's not fight amongst ourselves, ne?" The sickly sweet voice of Yakushi Kabuto made Lee want to slit the man's throat this very instance. He...he had been the one who had re-animated all of their dead comrades. He would die, there was no doubt about that.

Naruto and Shikamaru exchanged glances, their eyes traveling to a Kunoichi not far away who was looking at the assembled Konoha nin with interest. _Orochimaru._

"Ano, who are you?" Ino asked the older 'genin' with a flip of her hair.

Kabuto smiled at the blonde girl. "I'm Yakushi Kabuto, a Konoha genin just like you!" He pointed to his forehead protector with false pride.

"You look older than us..." Sakura looked at the gray haired teen. "Is this your first time taking the exam?"

Kabuto slid his glasses further up his nose, a glint present in the lenses. "Nope! It's my seventh!" He announced with no sign of being ashamed.

"Seventh?" Kiba scoffed. "You must suck."

Kabuto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Maa, well, there were circumstances that caused us to fail...so, I can't really blame myself..." He trailed off as his eyes glanced over Sasuke causing Naruto to clench his fists. "But, I do have a specialty." He divulged, knowing he was going to catch the genin's attention.

"Oh?" Sasuke spoke for the first time, Ino and Sakura perking visibly. "And what is that?"

Kabuto smirked at Sasuke whilst taking something out of his pack. "This." He said, holding up a box. "Ninja cards of all the genin present, their skills laid out in detail."

The bespectacled teen held one card out and read off of it. "Uchiha Sasuke, age twelve. Rookie of the Year, and rumored to be a genius in taijutsu, ninjutsu, and genjutsu. Heir to the famed Uchiha Clan, wielder of the _Sharingan_, the _Dojutsu_ that can copy anything. His sensei is Hatake Kakashi, also known as _Sharingan no Kakashi_, the Copy Ninja. His teammates are Haruno Sakura and Uzumaki Naruto. He has completed ninety seven D-rank, and 1 C-rank turned A-rank mission which included the death of Momochi Zabuza and the infamous tyrant Gato. This mission also led to the completion of..." Kabuto trailed off and looked at Naruto with an odd expression. "The Great Naruto Bridge."

Those who had been following Kabuto's words turned to Naruto with expressions ranging from respect to bafflement. The boy just kept an impassive face and stoicly stared at Kabuto with narrowed eyes. All those years ago, he finally understood what Kabuto was doing when he read Sasuke's card: he was playing on Sasuke's pride, making him puff out his feather's even more, grooming him to come to Orochimaru's side...

Kabuto whistled in appreciation. "That's some team you've got there, Sasuke-kun. How interesting."

"May I ask," Shikamaru cut in softly, the venom in his voice expertly disguised, "Just how you got that information?"

Lee and Naruto looked at each other as Kabuto stiffened ever so slightly before relaxing, an easy smile on his face. "Now now, a good shinobi never reveals his techniques."

"And yet, you just revealed Sasuke's." Shikamaru continued, enjoying the look on Sasuke and Kabuto's faces. "It makes me wonder, just what else do you know about everyone else..."

Before Kabuto could defend himself, the door slammed open, causing nearly every genin to flinch. Naruto smirked as he saw the tall frame off Morino Ibiki, Head of the TI Department make his dramatic entrance. He had to admit, seeing the familiar scarred face of his future friend was a refreshing sight. Ibiki was truly a frightening face, and the other genin's reactions had confirmed that.

"Alright you maggots, shut up and sit down! Each seat has a name in front of it, go find it and don't make a damn sound!" Ibiki's sadistic grin made many of the genin shiver. He flipped a switch on his way to the desk that let the Jonin senseis of the teams watch their students' progress. Every Jonin was separated by their country so there would be no fighting. Konoha sat with Konoha, Mizu sat with Mizu, and so on. There were no Iwa or Kumo Shinobi present, but that was to be expected considering the history between the those Hidden Villages and Konoha.

Shikamaru placed a palm on Naruto's shoulder and squeezed gently, reassuring his Hokage that everyone would be alright. Naruto was tense, but relaxed slightly as his best friend comforted him. The sight of Kabuto and a disguised Orochimaru was difficult to digest, especially when they all knew that they could not let anyone know that the Snake-Sannin was in Konoha.

However, that vile man was not going to be a problem until the exam. Who knows, at the moment, that kunoichi might actually be alive, and not just skin for Orochimaru to wear.

From the other side of the room. Lee crossed his arm over his chest and thumped it twice, a sign of fealty and loyalty, a symbol of courage. He too would be there for his best friends.

With a deep breath, Naruto took his seat, which happened to be right next to Hinata, just like last time. He steeled himself to see her this close. She died in his arms, confessing her love to him once more. He had been so depressed by her death, that it had nearly killed him as well.

"_Ohayo_, Hinata-chan." Naruto smiled, gulping at the blush that covered her cheeks. They were too young for romance now, but he knew that Hinata had loved him for a long time. This time around, they would definitely live long enough to make something out of this shy young girl and the boisterous young man.

Hinata's white eyes widened and she twiddled her thumbs together, shyly glancing at Naruto who was still staring at her intently. Hinata-chan? When did he start calling her that? When had he _ever_ talked to her for more than a couple seconds.

"_O...Ohayo,_ Na...Naruto-kun." She stuttered back quietly, her blush intensifying tenfold at Naruto's thousand watt grin. The boy placed a finger to his lips and pointed to their scary looking instructor.

"We'll talk later. The test is going to begin now." He tilted his head to look at her and smiled once more. "Good luck!"

Hinata gasped slightly. "H..hai!"

Ibiki stared impassively at the one hundred and eighty genin in front of him. He hoped to decrease that number to at least sixty.

"Now listen carefully! In front of you are tests. You must answer the questions correctly. If anyone in your team does not, then you are automatically disqualified."

The hairs on Naruto's neck prickled as Sakura and Sasuke's combined glares focused in on him. Tch. If only they knew that they were the ones who were going to need the help during this test and the others following it.

"If ANY of you are caught cheating, then the ENTIRE squad is disqualified. You have an hour to answer the questions correctly. UNDERSTAND?" Ibiki bared his teeth at them, and was pleased when some of them squealed from his glare. _Tch, kids. They scare so easily. I wonder how they will deal with Anko..._

"Then , if there are no questions, begin!"

The room was promptly filled with the scratching of pencils against paper and nervous grunts.

Ibiki sat back in his chair and gave the middle finger to the hidden camera in the room. Let's see just how many kids passed this damn exam...

* * *

From outside the room, the Konoha Jonin sighed as they watched Ibiki intimidate their poor genin.

"That man...he's a sadist alright." Kurenai muttered, watching Hinata as _eeped_ silently.

Kakashi, whose book was out once more, glanced at the monitor before looking away. "Eh, they'll be fine."

"Are you sure, Kakashi?" Aoba asked, settling down in his seat. "I mean, wasn't Uzumaki the dead-last?"

The cyclops tore his eye away from his book and gave Aoba a frigid look. "You know as well as I do that this test requires a different type of intelligence. Naruto will pass." He said it with so much certainty, that it was hard to doubt him.

And it didn't seem as though the blond gaki was having much trouble completing his test at all. He was so into it, so focused. Maybe Kakashi was right about his kid...

* * *

Naruto was happily scribbling away some random doodles on his paper that he was sure Ibiki would appreciate later on. It wasn't that he didn't know the answers, he did, but what was the point of taking the test when he knew that all he had to do was answer the tenth question?

He had an hour to spend, and he would not do math just for the hell of it. Sasuke no doubt, was copying the answers from some disguised chunin while Sakura probably actually knew all the answers.

It was scary how intelligent she was on one side, and how stupid she was when it came to matters involving Sasuke.

He knew Shikamaru and Lee were doing the same thing he was, while their teammates were trying their hardest to keep up.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Gaara's eye (which really creeped him out) looking over all of the papers, no doubt cheating. Naruto's lips twitched upwards slightly. He really couldn't wait until the day that _his_ Gaara, came back, the Gaara who he had fought against, fought with, who had died for him. His brother by the cruel circumstances that made them cursed at birth.

Naruto had stood there, by Gaara's side, at his wedding as the best man, watching as the boy who had believed in nothing more than hate had opened his heart enough to let Matsuri in. He had been there when Gaara had cried as he learned that Kankuro and Temari had died, taking his unborn niece or nephew along with their death. He had been there when Gaara and Shikamaru had shared their sorrow together, as men, as brothers, just watching as the bodies of Temari and Kankuro turned to ash in the burial that they had prepared.

And Naruto had done the same with Gaara, burying him in a private funeral, letting the sand take away its embodied spirit, tears coming out of his eyes as he watched Gaara slip away into the next world.

This time, Naruto would protect the slightly younger boy. He already had seals prepared in his sack in case Shukaku got out of hand.

He grinned as he saw Shikamaru casually swat away one of Shino's bugs, and watched as the insect landed on Sasuke. Shino always was a sneaky one. Quiet, yet powerful, just like Hinata. He would have to talk to Shibi-san later on, so that he would be able to hear more stories about his father.

"Number fourteen!" Ibiki's powerful voice echoed through the nearly silent room. "Disqualified! Don't give me that look, boy! I saw you trying to copy that kid's paper. You and your team are out!"

No one dared turn around to watch the three disgruntled genin leave, lest they be accused of cheating as well.

And so the hour progressed, slowly and frustratingly. Teams were disqualified one after another until only thirty or so remained. From sixty teams, half had been removed.

"Put those pencils down, maggots!" Ibiki boomed the second sixty minutes had ended. On his right, Hinata's hand was shaking so severely, that her pencil slid down and hit the desk with a soft _thud_.

Naruto instinctively placed a hand over her hers, calming her down. He didn't have to look at her face to know it was the color of a tomato. "Relax, Hinata-chan. We did fine."

Hinata wanted to disagree as she glanced at Naruto's paper which had nothing but random words and pictures all over them, but his soothing tone and warm hand shut her up. All she could do was nod.

Ibiki's eyes roved over everyone, chilling many to the core. He raised one finger and pointed it directly at Lee who lazily blinked at him. "Do you have what it takes to pass this exam?"

Lee scoffed before remembering his current age and gave Ibiki two thumbs up instead that didn't convince the older man at all. "If I didn't, then I wouldn't be here."

From where he was watching, Gai shook his head fondly. It was going to take more than Ibiki to intimidate _his_ kid.

Ibiki scrutinized the second coming of Gai carefully before moving on. "Good answer gaki, but let's see if you are through to stage two!" He glared at a blond haired kid in front of him who was smiling at him cheerily. He knew the kid. It was Uzumaki, the one who had caused him much grief in the past with all the pranks he pulled. He wondered if the kid could truly pass this exam. He had heard that Uzumaki was the dead-last, but then again, he had had a bridge named after him...so many paradoxes.

"Now for the tenth, and last question!" The kids straightened causing Ibiki to grin like a feral animal. "If you answer this question incorrectly, then you fail no matter how many right answers you had. But if you get it right, then you are clear to the next round. Raise your hands if you feel that you won't be able to answer this question, it is the most difficult of them all. Beyond this point, the exam will get infinitely harder and more dangerous. Choose wisely. If even one member of your team raises their hand, the entire team is out."

Mutterings broke out throughout the children. They hadn't been expecting this.

"That's bullshit!" Kiba cried out. "You can't do that!"

Ibiki only smirked at the Inuzuka. "Why not? I am the proctor for this section. I can do whatever the hell I want."

Kiba would have said something else, but Shino's hand on his shoulder stopped him. It wouldn't be good if Ibiki decided to disqualify them for Kiba being too loud. Akamaru yipped sadly but fell silent as well.

From behind Naruto, Sakura stared at her teammate, mentally urging him to give up. He wasn't as smart as them, he wouldn't be able to answer this question. It was okay if they failed here, there was always next time.

_Naruto, do what's best and leave. Please._

Sasuke on the other hand, was gazing intently at Sakura, telling her the exact opposite of what she was trying to convey to Naruto. If it was anyone who was going to screw with his chances of becoming a Chunin, it was her and her cowardice. Though he didn't want to admit it, Naruto would never give up, not for this.

One by one, teams started trickling away until only sixty genin, or twenty teams remained.

Naruto stared at Ibiki with a blank expression. He knew that Sakura would most likely want to back down, and that wasn't in his or Sasuke's best interest. On the other hand though, he didn't want to have the same response that he had last time. It would draw more attention to himself.

Shikamaru and Lee tensed as they saw Sakura glance from Sasuke to Naruto. Naruto couldn't see her indecision, so he wouldn't stop her from raising her hand.

_Naruto,_ Shikamaru thought worriedly,_ hurry up._

Hinata glanced at her crush with worry. His eyes were shrouded by his hair which had grown slightly longer, she noticed absently. He seemed to be thinking very hard about something, maybe about giving up. _No!_ She mentally took that thought out of her head. _Naruto-kun w__ould never give up, and neither will I!_ She forcefully told herself. Her resolve would not waver.

_Sakura_, Kakashi watched his team uneasily. _Don't do something stupid. You're so close. Keep your hand down_.

The pink haired girl closed her eyes, hoping her team didn't kill her for doing this. Slowly, she started to raise her hand. They weren't ready, she was sure of it.

"You've got to be kidding me, right?" Naruto's voice made her put her hand down. The blond genin laughed in Ibiki's face. "I can't believe that your little ploy worked!" His entire body shook with mirth.

The rest of the genin plus Ibiki stared at Naruto, some with confusion, others with comprehension.

Ibiki just smirked at the disrespectful gaki. "Oh," He raised an eyebrow with mock derision. "And what exactly do you mean by that, _kozu_?" His teammate, the pinky, had been about to disqualify this kid's team when he had spoken. It was almost as if the fox-kid knew this was going to happen...

From behind him, Shikamaru and Lee relaxed in their seats. Naruto always had impeccable timing.

"_Nani,_ isn't it obvious?" Naruto asked Ibiki sarcastically. "It's your test, why don't you explain, Morino-san." While he knew that this would draw unnecessary attention to him, it was the only way that Sakura wouldn't quit.

Ibiki had to give this kid points for having balls of steel. Talking to the head of the TI like this was borderline suicidal. In fact, Uzumaki reminded him a hell of a lot like Anko at this moment with his teasing expression and air of utter nonchalance. "Tch. I don't think so. You're the one who spoke up so _stupidly,_ so please, do continue."

Lee laughed out loud, causing Ibiki's gaze to shift over to him.

"What's so funny, spandex-boy? Do you want to fail that bad?"

'Spandex-boy' snorted twice before sobering. "Hm? Oh, nothing, I just wanted Naruto-kun to explain, that's it." Lee smiled softly to himself. This would be a good opportunity for Naruto to display some 'intelligence' and stop acting so damn stupid.

Naruto would have shot Lee a glare, but stopped knowing that wasn't wise. "Are you sure you want me to reveal your secret, Morino-san?"

"Please do." Ibiki replied, gritting his teeth at the ease that this kid was displaying despite the killing intent that Ibiki was exuding.

"There is no tenth question. It was a trick." Naruto said simply. "If any of the genin left before answering the unanswerable question, then they failed. But those who stayed back, like us, we all passed."

Ibiki looked at the camera in the room, knowing Hatake was watching his kid. That was one smart gaki, certainly not what he had been expecting. He observed Uzumaki closely. In hindsight, it wasn't hard to believe that the boy knew what he was doing. After all, one had to be pretty smart to paint-bomb ANBU HQ at the age of seven and evade capture.

"Hn. I suppose you do pass then." Ibiki growled at the self-satisfied expression on Naruto's face. "Congra-"

He was interrupted by the window shattering suddenly.

"MAKE WAY FOR THE SUPER SEXY AND ALWAYS READY MITARASHI ANKO-SAMA!"Anko stopped her little speech as she saw the expressions on the kids' faces.

"What the hell, Ibiki? Why are there so many kids?" Anko demanded, putting her hands on her hips, giving the genin an excellent view of her..._assets_.

Ibiki covered his face at his enthusiastic subordinate. "Anko, you're early! And as to why there are so many, blame this kid." He pointed at Naruto who was looking at Anko with a blank expression.

Anko's eyes lit up as she recognized the familiar whisker marks. The jailor of the Kyuubi and Kakashi's student. Excellent. He would be fun to play with...

"Uzumaki! What did you do?" Anko barked, moving closer to the kid who was blushing ever so slightly at her appearance.

"Me?" He asked in a deceptively innocent tone. "Nothing. I swear. All I did was point out that I was surprised as to why Mornio-san's half-assed plan to eliminate the genin worked. And then he passed us."

The vein in Ibiki's temple was visible. Half-assed plan? Who the hell did this kid think he was? Had he been tricked into passing them? "Why you little-"

"Ah, gomen, Morino-san." Naruto interjected, smiling at the man in a manor that was eerily reminiscent of Kakashi. "I didn't mean to insult you at all." He said it in such a way that could be construed as very insulting.

Back in the viewing room, all eyes turned to Kakashi who was currently very engrossed in his book...

"If you're so smart, _Uzumaki_, why don't you tell me something else." Anko smiled at him viciously. Naruto gulped, thinking that maybe he shouldn't have taken this so far.

"Nani, Anko-san?" He asked wearily, hoping that she wouldn't make him tell everyone about his life or something.

"You remind me _so_ much of that pervert, your sensei Hatake. So why don't you tell me something about him?"

"And if I refuse?" Naruto asked, closing his eyes.

"Then you fail." Anko replied promptly.

By now, Kakashi's book had vanished, and he was staring at the screen intently. What was Anko playing at? His team had already passed for Kami's sake!

"Very well then. But honestly, you grew up with the man. I assume you know a lot about him, probably more than I do." Naruto tried to stall, but Anko saw right through it.

"Humor me."

Naruto threw her a frigid glare that knocked her a bit off balance. "Hatake Kakashi. Son of the _Shiroi_ _Kiba_, student of the Yondaime Hokage, also known as _Sharingan no Kakashi_, the Copy Ninja."

Anko casually took out a kunai and polished it. "Not good enough. Everyone knows that. Tell me more."

The boy sighed. "No."

All eyes were on Naruto as he calmly refused. Sasuke and Sakura were confused at his behavior. First, he had made them pass, and now he was going to make them fail?

"No?" Anko echoed, raising an eyebrow. "Hm, well that means that you fa-"

"Mitarashi Anko." Naruto said smoothly, his quiet voice silencing the room. Anko looked at him with a mix of suspicion and expectancy. These kids had already passed, she had no authority in failing them. Of course she knew that. It's just that something about this child riled her up.

Naruto took a deep breath and continued, knowing that he had changed his image permanently after this little speech would be over. "Age 25, rank Special Jonin. Apprenticed to the traitor, Orochimaru of the Sannin at age twelve. Abandoned by said man two years later. By the way you keep touching your neck every couple of minutes, I would say that there is something there that...is _unpleasant._"

Anko bristled, wondering why he knew about her curse seal. That was not information available to genin.

Naruto scowled, his face turning harsh. "See. You didn't like it when I told you something about yourself. Why the _hell_ would I talk about my own sensei then, especially if he's not physically in this room right now." Naruto turned to the hidden camera that was not doing such a good job at staying hidden at gave it a two fingered wave.

"If he wanted me to know more about himself, then he would have told me. But if he had told me, then he would also expect that I keep it a secret, isn't that right?" Naruto's scowl widened as he glared at Anko. "I don't care who you are, but demanding to know about a man who is your superior through a genin is commenting about your own skill as a ninja. Isn't information gathering supposed to be an important skill?" Naruto's tone had become increasingly condescending as he bore into Anko, not realizing that he was sounding remarkably like he was berating a subordinate.

Before Anko had a chance to defend herself or yell at him, Naruto spoke again. The scowl on his face melted into an expression of complete weariness. "Look, if you like Kakashi-sensei,"

Anko choked while Kakashi was astutely ignoring the screen.

"Then just ask him yourself. But then why don't you ask why Asuma-sensei smokes, or why Gai-sensei wears those clothes of his? Even you, don't you wear those revealing _things_ because they make you feel empowered? Don't they make it easier to forget about your past? Don't answer, because I already know the answer."

By now, Naruto was hunched in his chair, hands in pockets, waiting for Anko's response. The entire room was silent, waiting for the confrontation between proctor and student to end.

Shikamaru looked over to Lee who was wearing the same dead serious explanation as Naruto was. Anko hadn't done this in their timeline. Though it was not a drastic change, they both knew that Naruto was slowly being forced to display his true strength and intellect. Though they had expected this, they did not want it to be done so quickly.

Anko gaped at the blonde in front of her, looking down at her figure and then back to the kid. She gulped slightly, still hard pressed for words to say. Did Naruto really know about her past, or was he forming a conclusion based on what he saw. She knew she shouldn't have pushed so far, it was her own fault for letting the kid say those things. He had masterfully taken her words and twisted them to his own liking.

"So do we pass?" Naruto asked, not an ounce of humor in his voice.

"Yeah kid." Ibiki said slowly, watching as Naruto's face changed from serious to weary in seconds. "You pass."

_With flying colors._

* * *

Kurenai stared at her silent comrades, wondering what the boy had meant when he had asked why Asuma smoked or why Gai wore the clothes that he wore. The more she thought about it, the more his words meant sense. Each of them had reasons as to what they did and why they did it. When Naruto had spoken, it was almost as he knew _what_ those reasons were.

Finally, Kakashi let out a long breath and eyed the now empty classroom. "That kid..." He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "I don't know where to begin."

"Naruto-kun is very intelligent." Gai noted quietly, his voice devoid of any exaggerated happiness. "More so than the Hokage imagined, Kakashi."

"The Hokage?" Kurenai started slowly. "What does he-"

"Hokage-sama suspected for a while now that Naruto has been hiding his intelligence." Kakashi explained to the young jonin wearily. "Gai, Asuma, and I were told that Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru were training together. He told us to keep an eye out on them, and keep him updated on their progress."

"That's ridiculous!" Aoba cried. "Naruto might be hiding his intelligence, but why does the Hokage want to track him? It's not because of..." He trailed off, looking at Kakashi to negate what he was thinking.

"Absolutely not." Kakashi stated firmly. "There have been no traces of demonic chakra around Naruto."

"Dad sees Naruto as a grandchild." Asuma added. "Naruto usually is quite open and dad didn't like it when he felt that the kid was keeping stuff from him. Dad...means well, but, it can construed the wrong way." He thought back to what Naruto had said about his smoking habit. Was it possible that he knew why Asuma smoked? Judging by what he had seen, he wouldn't put it past the boy.

"The boy is capable of great things." Gai piped in. "So are all of the genin. We can only wait and see what they will do next."

Ibiki burst into the room, his face overflowing with rage. Without another word, he thrust three papers into the hands of Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma respectively before storming out of the room.

As the three jonins looked down, they couldn't help but smile despite the serious atmosphere of the room.

After all, who couldn't be a little amused at seeing three nearly identical pictures drawn by Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru, in which Ibiki was sitting in a meadow, surrounded by turtles in Lee's picture, deer in Shikamaru's, and foxes in Naruto's, petting them contently.

Underneath Lee's picture, there was a caption which read. _Morino Ibiki is just like a turtle: hard on the outside, but soft and squishy on the inside._

Poor Ibiki. Those three had really nailed his character on the head.

* * *

_Suiton: Mizu Tatsumaki: _Water Style: Water Tornado

_Raiton: _Lightning Style

_Kyodai: _Siblings

_Hitsuji: _Ram

_Kozu: _Child

_Ohayo:_ Good Morning


	6. Of Forests and Death

**Aha, well, I know it's been a while. Sorry. It's been a hectic time of year as I'm sure many of you know. I just want to say thanks! Over _one hundred_ _and fifty_ reviews for Chapter five! And, over _1,000_ alerts! That's amazing! Actually, that's beyond amazing! Thank you so much! I know many of you are dying to meet Karin or some other character, and I really tried to fit her in, but she won't work in this chapter, but will come in later. As you will see in the next chapter, I will bring in another character who really will change Naruto and the gang's life! (Not Jiraiya, but he will come in soon too!)**

**Also, I want to make it clear that THIS IS NOT SLASH. Please don't ask for it, because frankly, I don't know how to write that. Oh, and to the people who do not like Naru/Hina. Sorry. But like I said in the description, there is no overt romance. So it won't be all mushy gushy smut...**

**I also decided that posting every Friday is unrealistic because of the gap that I took between last chapter and this one. So I'll post every month on a Friday for sure, and if I'm really motivated, even earlier.**

**If you have any questions, shoot me a PM and I'll try to answer them.**

**I just wanted to take the time to thank _shikamaruB5_ for getting me to write the chapter. If it weren't for his/her CONSTANT encouragement, I wouldn't have done this. So thanks!**

**Anyway, don't want to say too much. Just enjoy the sixth ins****tallment of _A Wrinkle in Time..._**

* * *

Naruto was well aware of the contemplative looks he was getting, especially the ones from Kabuto and the disguised Orochimaru. It was hard not to ignore the incredibly _creepy_ stare of the _hebi-teme_.

However, what Anko had asked was, in his books, severely out of line. No Konoha shinobi should ask another shinobi about yet another shinobi's habits, especially not with enemy ninja present. Now yes, Naruto had revealed some details about his sensei and some of the others that he probably shouldn't have known, but it was done in the heat of the moment and not really completely thought about. He would have to run damage control later on.

Besides him were Lee and Shikamaru, staying an adequate distance away so as not to arouse suspicion...even more than they actually had.

Behind him were his teammates, yet Naruto was not going to call them that just yet. Exactly like last time, Sakura had thought he wasn't fit to continue, and exactly like last time, he had blown everyone's expectations to the wind.

Naruto was not particularly bitter about his past (though he had every right to be), but if it was one thing he wanted to change, it would be that he didn't want to beat Kiba by farting in his face. That was a most disgraceful win from someone who came from the noble Uzumaki Clan, cousin to the Senju Clan, and the last Namikaze as well.

Oh, and Sasuke getting bitten by Orochimaru. That was something that he didn't want to happen either.

However, Naruto and his brothers in arms were got in a bit of a quandary. If they tried to change things too much, then the future, though changed that it would be, would be so different, that the trio would be in unfamiliar territory, in no man's land so to speak.

They needed the upper hand if they were to come out of this war relatively unscathed and victorious.

But if they didn't try to change too much, then things could turn out the way they had before.

Although, the Nara Clan's involvement in Naruto and Lee's lives, plus the closeness between them and Shikamaru had already changed things. Naruto's dynamics with his team had changed. Kakashi was paying closer attention, (for better or worse), and the other two had alternated between respecting his sudden leap of perceived intelligence or belittling it.

In that case, nothing much had changed between him and his team save for Kakashi.

Naruto was shaken by his thoughts when Sakura grabbed his arm to stop him from walking into a fence, the very same flimsy fence that protected the outside world from the Forest of Death. His gut clenched at the thought of what might transpire just beyond the metal gates. One discreet glance back at his two comrades revealed that they had the same expression he had.

"Alright then!" Anko boomed, shooting a glower at Naruto who astutely ignored the woman. It was her fault for bringing up that subject anyway... "Each of your teams will be given a release form that every member is to sign! Signing this form is the same as signing over your life."

All talking ceased as Anko looked each genin over, appraising them, giving them a silent warning.

Sakura looked particularly green at this moment as Naruto saw her inching closer to Sasuke. She was right to be worried.

Anko continued, her voice lower and more menacing. "Konoha is not responsible for what happens inside of that forest. If someone dies, then they die. It's not our problem."

Her tone had the desired effect. Some of the weaker genin let their emotions blatantly show upon their faces while the more experienced ones were trying hard not to gulp.

From the rookie nine, Shikamaru noticed that Ino was shaking, as was Sakura. Hinata looked paler than usual. Only Tenten, the eldest and most experienced genin had a look of utter concentration on her face.

The Nara frowned. In the previous timeline, the three younger girls had blossomed while Naruto was gone. Sakura, without Naruto or Sasuke, pushed herself until she was a fine medic. Ino, not to be outdone by Sakura, trained with the new Ino-Shika-Cho teams to develop and become stronger. And Hinata? Hinata followed Naruto's _nindo_ to never give up and immersed herself into the Hyuuga Clan techniques with Neji at her side, helping her every step of the way.

But in this world, these girls would have to become women much quicker. They were twelve or thirteen at the moment. War had officially been declared three years later, but the the foundations for the war were already lain. Nagato, Akatsuki, Madara, Obito, they were all alive in this time period.

With a shake of his head at that last thought, Shikamaru turned his attention back to Anko who was giving each team either a Heaven or Earth scroll and explaining that the other teams must gather the opposite scroll to win.

"You have five days!" Anko exclaimed once the last release form was in her hand. Some of her colleagues were distributing scrolls. Shikamaru noticed that he had received a Heaven scroll, and by the looks of it, so had all the Konoha teams. The Nara's eyes narrowed. The Chunin exams were an excuse for war, and it seemed as though the idea was to pit each nation against the other, and not have internal fighting. At least until the preliminary rounds of course.

"If you fail to retrieve the opposite scroll within this limit to reach the entrance for the second part, then you fail! Remember! You have to get the scrolls," Her eyes landed on Gaara who was practically salivating at the mouth to Naruto who narrowed his own. "By _any_ means necessary."

With that ominous statement, she clapped her hands, and the gates opened. Lee saw that many genin cowered at the sight of the seemingly never ending forest. He resisted the urge to scoff. If these kids knew what the future was like, they would have taken the forest no problem.

"BEGIN!"

For a moment, all of the genin just stood there, looking at each other. But within nanoseconds, they all moved from their respective stations and into the forest. All but three genin had no idea what was waiting for them in this place.

And those three genin were just waiting for what was waiting for them.

* * *

Naruto was restraining himself for strangling Sasuke. His _thou shalt bow at my feet_ attitude was pissing him off. He hadn't spent more than a day at a stretch together with Sasuke, and that was because they had to do missions. And since they were stuck doing D-ranks, it was easy to ignore the Uchiha. However, now they were forced to work together, and the Alpha male in Sasuke decided that he should be in charge because _obviously_ Naruto was _soo_ stupid.

At the moment, he was angrily stomping behind his "leader", not caring that he looked like an impetuous brat. He had been Hokage for Kami's sake! Never would he follow this Uchiha! Naruto paused slightly when he felt a warm feeling in his gut. Startled for a minute, he bit back a laugh as he realized that Kurama was agreeing with his feelings. Looks like tall, dark, and furry was slowly waking up.

A frown was on his face and gone in the next moment. If his companion was indeed awakening, then Naruto would have to be careful. He wasn't sure if the fox's chakra would mingle in with his own, hell, he wasn't sure if he would be back on the same level as he was in his own timeline.

"Pay attention Naruto!" Sakura snapped when the poor kid nearly bumped into a tree. His response was shooting her an uncharacteristic scowl before looking away. It wasn't as though Sakura wanted to deliberately pick on her teammate, but he didn't make it easy for her to like him. Granted, he had stopped asking her for dates every three minutes, and he seemed _much_ more powerful, but there was something about his attitude towards Sasuke-kun that didn't suit well with her.

Said boy spared one glance at Naruto before smirking in a superior sort of manor and keep trudging on. Their team had an Earth Scroll, which meant that they had to retrieve a Heaven Scroll from an opposing team. It should be easy enough. They had five days to get the damned thing after all.

If only he knew what had happened the _first_ time that all three of them were in this very same forest, thinking the very same thing.

Naruto, to his credit, was putting all the _what ifs_ that were going through his head away, and focusing on the present. He knew what Orochimaru was planning this time, and he wasn't about to let Sasuke get bitten.

This time, he had Shikamaru and Lee by his side to back him up. If anything went wrong, he had them to rely on. Plus, Naruto could say with full confidence that he was much stronger and more intelligent than when he had done this the first time around.

And honestly speaking, Naruto had been _fucking_ stupid back in the day unless it was tactical thinking. Now, he had his mind screwed on straight and his feet firmly planted on the ground.

However, time travel was like a ripple in the water. Each new ripple that they created could be the signal of a tsunami. Therefore, they had to tread very carefully.

"I don't think that we should get the scrolls from our own Konoha ninjas." Naruto spoke suddenly, finally getting the other two's attention.

Sasuke stopped in his tracks and turned to look at the shorter boy, Sakura doing the same. For once, they didn't have looks of derision on their faces. Looks of contemplation were there instead.

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, though she caught the jist of what Naruto was getting at.

Inwardly, Naruto sighed, thanking whatever God existed that they hadn't had to debate this subject as well.

"Think about it. The Chunin exams aren't just about the individual shinobi, they are about the Village as well. If we stick together with our own village, then there is a higher probability that the exams will be filled with the people that we know instead of foreigners. Also, there is strength in numbers so we have an advantage there as well." Naruto's voice was purposefully quiet so that only his teammates could hear him, yet that quiet tone sounded more authoritative than anything else.

Sasuke took a minute to look Naruto up and down, his eyes screwed up in concentration. But, he just nodded and turned, as if to give his approval to what Naruto had just said. Once Sasuke had done that, Sakura immediately followed suit.

The boy grinned slightly and patted himself on the back. Now, all they had to do was get the other Konoha teams to agree, and an alliance would be formed. And really, they just had to convince Kiba's team, or just Kiba because of how hot headed he was, and Neji's team. Even if Lee was on that team, Neji was the clearly defined leader who had a very high ego and a strong sense of pride. He wouldn't take anyone's help if it was the last thing he did. Or at least, that's who Neji was _before_.

He kept pace behind the other two, noting how Sakura's gait was slightly jumpy, and how Sasuke had more rigidity to his walk then was normally there. Naruto resisted scoffing. If this was war, and in a way it was, and those two had been walking like that, the enemy would have immediately taken them out because their walks were tells; tells that they were nervous.

Of course, they had every right to be. They were only twelve and had no idea what to expect. But Naruto did, and perhaps he was being slightly unfair towards them.

Sakura looked around nervously, her hands sweating. "Um guys..." Her two teammates looked at her quizzically. "Where are we?"

Indeed, they had been walking for some time now, and all they could see no matter which direction they turned to was miles upon miles of jungle.

"We're in the South-West section." A voice behind them piped in.

Sakura and Sasuke immediately turned around, kunais in hand, but Naruto stopped them before they took someone's eye out, having sensed the person's chakra earlier. "Relax guys! It's only Shikamaru and his team!"

Team ten stood in front of Team seven, with Shikamaru and Naruto exchanging secret nods.

"Ino-pig!" Sakura yelped. "What are you doing here!"

The blond girl smirked with malice. Naruto shivered slightly. Ino was as bad as Sakura when it came to their so called rivalry. "Well," She drawled out slowly, "This is my team? So why shouldn't I be here?" Then she sighed ever so slightly. "But since you asked _so_ nicely, Shikamaru said it would be best if we found you, so we tracked you guys down."

"You know." Sasuke spoke for the first time, his brooding eyes flitting between Naruto and Shikamaru. "Naruto said something very close to what Shikamaru said."

"So?" Shikamaru interjected. He shot a cheeky grin at his friend before saying, "I guess great minds think alike."

That had the Uchiha scoffing within seconds. "As if." He muttered before stalking away which made the girls of the teams try to keep pace beside him. This left only Chouji, Naruto, and Shikamaru who were meandering away at a reasonable rate.

"How have you been, Naruto?" Chouji asked, munching away on some of the crisps he had.

The boy/man smiled. Chouji had always been so gentle up until Asuma had died. Then he had truly emerged as a warrior. All Akimichis were nice folk, but if you pushed their buttons correctly, they were a force to be dealt with. "I'm fine Cho, how about you? Asuma-sensei treating you enough times?"

The chubby ninja smiled, rubbing his belly at the same time. "Of course! Mom said that I gained some muscle mass the other day, so if I keep going like this, I'll be built in no time!"

Shikamaru grinned fondly at his childhood best friend. Not many understood that the Akimichi Clan converted the protein that they ate into pure muscle. That food was like steroids to them, but they needed it to perform the Clan Techniques. So while many were teased for being "big boned" it actually was true. The bones in their body expanded, especially when they used the jutsu that made them grow bigger, like giants.

The three of them walked behind their team in amiable silence, Naruto and Shikamaru both searching for signs of Orochimaru or Kabuto.

"Do you know where Lee is?" Shikamaru asked Naruto in an undertone.

"No. Do you remember how we met up last time?"

The Nara scratched his head. "Didn't it have something to do with Sasuke getting bitten, and we were taking turns watching him when Lee showed up with his team? Let's make sure something like that doesn't happen again." Shikamaru added the last part darkly.

Naruto nodded in concurrence. "But," He said with a low chuckle, "All this green foliage means that Lee has the perfect camouflage."

Both the time travelers shared a quiet laugh before Chouji looked at them strangely, forcing them to seize conversation.

"You two seem closer than usual." Chouji remarked casually as he watched his two friends interact.

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly before glancing at Shikamaru who nodded ever so slightly. "Well, ha ha, you know what they say. Birds of a feather flock together, right?"

"We're both dead-lasts, isn't it obvious that we would stick together?" Shikamaru deadpanned causing both Chouji and Naruto to share a good laugh which in turned caused the other three to glare at them.

"You two are so-" Whatever Chouji was about to say was abruptly cut off by the whizzing _swoosh _of a kunai that was no doubt intended for them. Immediately, the six genin were on guard, kunais out, positioned in attack and defense stances.

Shikamaru glanced at Naruto who shook his head ever so slightly and mouthed _three_. The Nara let out a small sigh of relief. Orochimaru was not part of this guerrilla attack. It was probably some random Kusa or Mizu team. He put his hand in the traditional rat seal, intending to bind his attackers, but it seemed Sasuke had other plans as a cry of _Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu_ was heard from behind him, followed by a giant ball of fire which forced him and Naruto to jump out of the way in order to avoid being burned.

The three enemy ninja, who turned out to be from Mizu, deflected the fire with a simple water technique. Like most teams, there was two boys and a girl.

"Is that the best that this _mighty_ village has to offer?" The girl taunted, her plain brown hair glinting in the harsh sunlight. "And you!" She turned her attention to Sasuke which caused Ino and Sakura to bristle visibly. "Doesn't the _oh so powerful _last _loyal_ Uchiha know that water douses fire? You're all outclassed here. Hurry up and give us your scroll, _or else._"_  
_

Naruto tensed, risking a peak back at said Uchiha. The girl had no idea what she was talking about, or who she was talking to. Sasuke didn't like being reminded that he was inferior to anyone, especially a foreigner. Naruto had no wish to see this girl killed by Sasuke's sheer rage.

It seemed that Shikamaru didn't either because seconds after the girl had said those words, she was trapped in the Nara's shadow technique.

"Has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?" He asked lazily, not really willing to exert himself. "You're outnumbered two to one. It's you who should give up, _or else_."

The Mizu nin's face, which was already furious, grew even more angry. Her teammates, seeing the predicament she was in, launched into action.

"_Suiton: Bakusui Shoha!*" _One of the genin shouted, water spewing from his mouth.

The six genin were forced to move out of the way as the genin who performed the jutsu rode the giant wave he had created. The smirk on his face was not one that either Naruto nor Shikamaru were particularly fond of. The shadow that the latter had cast was forcibly removed, and the girl was up and moving again.

"Get ready!" Surprisingly, it was Ino who called that out as they all saw the second male genin run through a series of hand seals.

"_Suiton: Daibakuryu!*" _Immediately, a giant whirlpool was created, intending to drown the six of them.

From a tree branch above, Naruto narrowed his eyes, noticing how the wave creating genin's wave was diminishing in size. It made sense. The size of the wave was dependent on the chakra levels of the user. Since the technique he had used was at least B-rank, and he was only a genin with average sized coils, he was quickly running out. And the other boy...

Two water users in a village with mostly fire affinities. How foolish. The jutsus would only neutralize each other. A quick glance at Sasuke showed that the Uchiha was soaked, something Naruto would have laughed at, but he knew that Sasuke wouldn't, or rather, _couldn't_, perform a fire style jutsu because of his very inflated ego. No other genin, not even Naruto in the previous timeline, had elemental techniques in their repertoire until after Sasuke had left.

"Naruto!" Shikamaru hissed from another tree. The water level in the forest was currently rising, and Shikamaru would _not_ be bested by mere _genin_ when he himself was a _very_ elite _jonin_, and advisor to the future hokage/his best friend.

The blond sighed. He was going to have to reveal yet another skill. But if it was to help his friends, then so be it. Running through handseals at a blinding rate, Naruto cried out, _"Doton: Doryuheki!*" _

Water was weak against earth, so when a giant wall of solid mud crashed against the water, the water was absorbed by the earth element which caused it to swell.

The Mizu genin were thrown for a loop when they skidded in the damp and muddy ground. But Naruto wasn't done yet. He had to solidify the mud if he wanted to successfully trap them. He jumped down into the mud and placed both hands deep inside of it. "_Doton: Doro Mayu!*"_

The effect was nearly instantaneous. The ground in front of him rippled like water and hardened with each ripple. Though the Mizu nin tried to run, it was futile. The mud reached their necks, binding their hands, and only leaving their heads visible. In truth, Naruto had gotten the idea for this jutsu by watching and trying to copy Gaara's Sand Burial, though it was not as bloody as Gaara's. The only element it could work with was Earth, and that was a very weak element for Naruto because of his affinity to Wind, as well as Kurama's for Fire.

The enemy nin struggled viciously against the blanket of earth they were in, but it was to no avail. The six Konoha genin landed on the now solid ground, most of them looking at Naruto with something akin to respect.

Of course, Sasuke was fuming on the inside at the so called _dobe's _never before seen abiliti_es_, while Shikamaru, who knew Naruto's true capability, couldn't care less about the low level ninjutsu that any trained genin could do.

"Nice one, Naruto!" Chouji gave the blond boy a thumbs up and a wide smile. Behind him, the two girls also shakily gave Naruto grateful nods before all of them turned to the Mizu Nin who seemed to have given up based on the morose expressions on their faces.

Shikamaru though, didn't care about them. What he cared about was the pack that one of them had dropped that carried an Earth Scroll. Strolling over oh so casually, he picked it up and handed it to his Hokage.

"Hey!" Ino cried, her hands up in indignation. "Why'd you give the scroll to Naruto?"

"Cuz he did the work." Shikamaru deadpanned. "Plus, now that we've helped him, he's gonna repay the favor."

Naruto just nodded and gave the scroll to Sakura. Whether he liked it or not, she was the most responsible, and the one who would keep the scroll safe. Indeed, she simply accepted the scroll and sealed it without blinking.

"If we're done here..." Sasuke scowled at the Mizu Nin.

"Let's go." Shikamaru stated tiredly.

Naruto gave a sinister grin to the trapped shinobi along with a wave.

Those nin could only watch as their only hope of escape jumped from branch to branch, disappearing into the foliage.

* * *

Unknown to the genin, their senseis were watching as well via small cameras installed throughout the forest.

"That was...unexpected." Asuma remarked. He hadn't expected his lazy genius to turn the scroll over to Naruto, no matter how close they were. But Asuma had learned that whatever Shikamaru did, he did with great thought behind each action.

Kakashi leaned back in his chair, his one visible eye narrowed. Naruto hadn't shown that he could do elemental jutsus. In fact, the only ninjutsu Naruto used was the Kage Bunshin. This kid...Kami.

And Shikamaru...that kid was something else as well. It was very un-shinobi like to simply hand over something that was akin to salvation, but once again, it showed the type of trust that those two, plus the Lee kid had.

None of that trust came from simply training, it came from a bond, a bond between brothers. The bond that Kakashi and Obito should have had.

The Copy-Ninja made himself comfortable, because he knew this was going to be quite an eventful test.

* * *

Lee was having the time of his life in the forest. Mostly because he was sort-of bonding with Neji, but also because it gave him an excuse to use some of the unending _YOUTH_ a.k.a expendable energy, that was making him jumpy all the time. The spandex clad boy/man was literally bouncing off the trees, doing somersaults and flips whenever he could.

Tenten, being the understanding girl that she was, simply thought that Lee was over-excited for this exam. While she was partially right, Lee was understandably jumpy as well for he had seen Orochimaru, and knew that the ex-Sennin would attack sometime in the next day or so.

He wondered where his two friends were, if they were together, and most importantly, if they were safe. Lee didn't actually come into contact with them in the previous timeline until Sasuke had been bitten, and they were all forced to protect him.

"Lee-kun!" Tenten called, slapping her forehead in exasperation. She had been watching her teammate for sometime now, and it seemed he was so lost in his own _flames of youth_ that he didn't realize he was almost about to crash into a very big oak tree which was home tosome _very_ ferocious looking squirrels._  
_

The sheepish look that she gained in return was proof that Lee had heard her and acknowledged what she said.

Neji, though incredibly stoic, even for a Hyuuga that he was, couldn't help but smirk at the display. His teammate was eccentric to the point of downright annoying, but he was incredibly talented as well. And if it was one thing that Neji respected, it was strength.

"Tenten, Lee!" Neji's voice stopped both in their tracks. The long haired genin's Byakugan was activated, and he was currently staring out into the vast foliage.

"What do you see, Neji-kun?" Tenten already had her weapons scroll out.

Lee hid a small smirk that could have rivaled Neji's as he entered into his taijutsu stance. That was the difference between Sakura and Ino, and Tenten. Tenten had found her motivation from the start. Her father owned a weapons shop, and she was enthralled with Shinobi life since she was a toddler. Her dream was to become like Tsunade-Sama, and that dream was her ideal.

Sakura and Ino, their motivation was not like that. Sakura's parents pushed her into this life, and when she discovered _her_ "Sasuke-Kun!", that became her motivation: to be good enough so that Sasuke would notice her and make her the next Mrs. Uchiha. It wasn't till after Naruto came back with a freakin' hole in his chest did she start seeing the light. And that promise...no...that _burden_ she had put on his friend, the one to bring Sasuke back, it haunted her until the day she had died by the hands of the very man she had adored.

"Three nin, heading south-east towards us. Chakra levels look to be a little less than mine, so on par with you, Tenten. Everyone be on guard." Neji grunted softly.

The two others simply nodded and waited for the enemy genin to come.

And when Lee saw the music notes on their headbands, he groaned. It looked as though time-travel had changed things _ever_ so slightly.

The girl, Tsuchi Kin, if he wasn't mistaken, had fought Shikamaru in the preliminaries, and one of the boys, Abumi Zaku, had fought Shino. Both of them had fallen to Orochimaru's _Edo Tensei_, when he used them for human sacrifices.

The bandaged one, Kinuta Dosu, was someone whom Gaara had killed. Lee recognized the description that the future Kazekage had given of the Sound-nin who had foolishly challenged the then Jinchuuriki in order to make sure that Sasuke's opponents in the finals would not get in the way for Dosu to kill him himself.

However, now was not the time to dwell on the past. This was Lee's new timeline, and he wasn't going to let past demons get the better of him or his team.

With a hard gleam in his eyes, Lee beckoned to his opponents mockingly.

"Bring it."

* * *

"We're lost, aren't we?" Shikamaru sighed as passed a tree that he swore he had seen three minutes ago. Even though he and Naruto were there, the forest was a complete mess. Only Anko and probably Ibiki could navigate this place without markers that were usually there, but had been taken out for this event.

"No." Naruto replied curtly. "Little Sasuke-_chan_ is simply _letting_ us walk in circles to enhance our dismal observational skills."

Shikamaru had to conceal a snort at the sarcasm. Indeed, the Uchiha had decided to assume command and march forward, knowing full well that he had no idea where the hell he was going.

"Something's gonna happen." The blond commented as if it were the most natural thing in the world to do.

"Yep."

"And it's all Sasuke's fault."

"Uh-huh."

"So, theoretically speaking, say a certain person who has the opposite of Ophidiophobia decided to show up, and again, theoretically speaking, this person decided to attack a certain avenger, then, once again, I remind you that I'm speaking hypothetically here, and this avenger was say...taken out of commision by the person who has the opposite of Ophidio-"

Naruto was cut off by a thwack on the head. Thankfully, since they were at the tail of the group, no one saw anything except for Chouji who was close enough to hear Naruto's quiet moan of pain.

Shikamaru pinched his temples. "I swear Ruto, you will be the death of me." He shot his friend a withering glare. "And if i didn't know that Ophidiophobia was the fear of snakes, then I would most definitely call you a mentally retarded _baka_."

Naruto pouted slightly, but his eyes were sparkling with mirth. "Don't worry, Shika. Orochimaru is trying to kill Sasuke at this point. He couldn't before because thankfully, I meddled. Instead, he chose to mark him and place a five-pronged seal upon me which made my ability to control chakra worse than it already is...was." He closed his eyes, remembering how Ebisu-sensei had been trying to teach him to walk on water, and his piss poor control then.

"Lucky for you that your ability to control your bodily functions was also_ piss poor_." Shikamaru grinned, remembering how Kiba had been defeated by Naruto's fart.

His future Hokage scowled. "Don't remind me. I can't believe that I won."

"Has anyone told you that you have the oddest, most unbelievable luck?"

Naruto smiled a wistful and longing smile, fingering the place on his neck that still didn't have the Shodai's necklace. "Yeah, all the time."

But that smile turned into a scowl again when, _encore une fois_*, he and Shikamaru realized that they were going nowhere.

All of a sudden, Naruto tensed which caused Shikamaru to stop and look back in concern.

"What is it?" He whispered urgently.

"Lee." Naruto replied. "He's in trouble."

"You sensed him?" Shikamaru asked.

"Him, Neji, and Tenten. They're all close by. But..." Naruto closed his eyes and tried to focus on them. What he felt were three...no, _six_ chakra signatures very near to their location, just west of them actually. Six...they weren't with Team eight so... "I've got it! They have to be fighting!"

Just as Naruto said this, the clanging of kunai against kunai was heard from above the six of them.

"Not again." They heard Sakura mutter in exasperation. But she obediently pulled a kunai out and settled down in a defensive stance.

"_Konoha Senpu!*" _All six dodged the falling of a massive tree before going to see what was happening.

"Lee!" Naruto cried, narrowly swerving to avoid what looked like a mass wave of _henged _kunai. His friend was just above him, kicking and punching away at the enemy nin.

"Naruto-kun! Oto!" Lee managed to say whilst fighting off a rather disturbing looking genin with bandages covering his entire body.

Naruto's eyes widened. Lee had said Oto. These were Sound nins. That meant Orochimaru was close by.

_"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!" _Sasuke shouted from overhead.

For once, Sasuke's favorite jutsu came in handy. The fire created a diversion long enough for Lee to get a solid hit on Dosu which caused the bandaged genin to crash into the tree behind him which made several trees behind that fall as well.

It took a couple seconds for the genin who didn't know Lee like Naruto and Shikamaru did to look at the oddly dressed shinobi and then back at the downed and now unconscious Sound nin, and then back to Lee who was rubbing the back of his head in a coy manner.

"Lee." Naruto's voice lowered to a more authoritative tone.

"Naruto-kun." Lee bowed his head ever so slightly. "Sound nin." He said again.

"And there's still more of them!" The girl said!

Naruto narrowed his eyes. Tsuchi Kin, and the boy next to her was Abumi Zaku. Both were pawns in Orochimaru's scheme.

The girl's long raven hair flew back, the snake patterned scarf around neck reminding all three time travelers that these Sound nin were not just ordinary genin, they were at least at a chunin level.

Shikamaru recognized them as well, judging by the tensing of his body. The girl was someone he had fought against, and someone he had defeated. How troublesome...

_"Kage Shibari no Jutsu!*" _Shikamaru put his hands in the rat seal, trapping Zaku in his shadow. If he remembered correctly, it was Kin who had no experimentation done on her. Zaku on the other hand, used sound waves to destroy his enemies. He was a larger threat.

Seeing how Zaku was trapped, Naruto launched into attack mode, creating hundreds of clones on the fly. He had only meant to create twenty or so. _Damn, my chakra control is still pretty bad_. He thought as he fell into a familiar taijutsu stance to Team Gai.

Neji's eyes widened as he saw his blond comrade copy Lee's stance. As far as he knew, only Lee and Gai were trained in this type of taijutsu. It seemed as though Lee knew this boy who was dressed in..._orange!_ What respectable ninja wore orange! Wasn't this the boy who had subtly berated both Ibiki-san, and the woman proctor? But by the way this boy was fighting, he was good, better than the so called Uchiha prodigy. _How odd...__  
_

"Naruto, she's using a weapon!" Chouji cried out as he saw Kin pull out a senbon. From what the Akimichi had learned about the tool, they were deadly because of their size. They were able to pinpoint each _tenketsu_ and close them so that the attackee was left without chakra and very vulnerable.

"Thanks Cho!" Naruto grunted, blocking another one of the girl's attack. Haku had used senbon, and while Naruto couldn't remember much about that fight, he did remember almost losing control after seeing Sasuke's, nearly dead, senbon ridden body. Senbons were usually countered with fine lines of chakra that severed the trajectory. While he was able to do that when he was older, right now, his control was terrible. The only person here who could do that was Shikamaru or Neji.

"Shikamaru, Chakra strings!" Naruto ordered, executing a roundhouse on the poor girl.

The Nara, who still had Zaku in a bind, was also in a bit of a quandary. He probably couldn't control the shadows as well as he wanted to, otherwise, he could do both at once. His next best option was Neji.

"Hyuuga-san." The Hyuuga looked indifferent at being addressed by someone he didn't know at all. This must have been the missing member of team ten when all of their senseis had forced them to have dinner. Lee, the blond boy, and this Nara were conspicuously missing, as was the Uchiha.

"What?"

Shikamaru grimaced at the cold tone in his future friend's voice. "I have to get this guy," He gestured to Zaku who was struggling to escape, "our of my grip, so that I can help Naruto out. Mind helping out a fellow Konoha shinobi? Plus, he has an Earth scroll, so you could take that to."

"Shikamaru!" Ino yelled. "Why do you keep giving away scrolls?"

"Not now Ino." The Nara scowled. "I'm trying to - what the hell?" Shikamaru dropped to one knee, as did Zaku who's neck was rapidly spreading with Orochimaru's cursed seal. The Oto-nin was howling in pain, clutching his neck. Yet, because he could not move, the pain was nearly unbearable.

Above them, Kin cursed as she saw the predicament her teammate was in. Orochimaru-sama must have activated the seal. It was a signal. A signal which meant that the Uchiha, which had been their main target, was no longer their concern. Orochimaru-sama would deal with the brat himself.

In one fluid moment, Kin threw a senbon at Shikamaru which was aimed straight at his jugular. The Nara was forced to dodge it, releasing Zaku, and letting Kin take her teammate to safety. The nine Konoha genin saw her escaping with Zaku tucked under one hand, and the newly recovered Dosu following quickly after her.

Naruto and Lee landed near Shikamaru, knowing exactly why the three had fled.

"Nara-san." Neji's voice caused Shikamaru to turn. Much to his shock, Neji was holding the Earth Scroll that the Oto-nin had discarded and extending his arm to give it to Shikamaru.

"What-?"

"We already have one. Tenten," The panda haired girl waved cheerfully, "found one left in the carnage of what looked like a bloody battle."

"There was _sand_ everywhere." Lee added, emphasizing the last part.

_Gaara_.

"Thank you...Neji-san, right? Hinata's cousin?" Shikamaru took the scroll, watching how the neutral expression on Neji's face turned into a scowl for a split second before returning back to its stoic state.

"That is correct." He made to leave, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Neji was going to shake it off, but he found himself looking into the most luminous blue eyes he had ever seen.

"Neji-san," Naruto began. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, and these are my teammates, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke, but you have already met them." He ignored Sasuke's bristle at being addressed last. "We, that is, Shikamaru's team and myself, are asking if you would like to join us."

Lee's, _I think it's a good idea_ was left in the background when Neji raised an eyebrow and asked, "And why would we do that?"

"Think of it this way, Neji-san. There is strength in numbers. Now that we all have the proper scrolls, no one is tempted to steal the others scroll. We are all on even footing, plus, we can ensure that Konoha will be on top by traveling together."

"A good ninja is supposed to be alone, Uzumaki-san. A good ninja doesn't need others." Neji scoffed. He had heard about Uzumaki from his pathetic cousin. Dead-last, no family, the Hokage's favorite, prank-puller extraordinaire. All in all, a talent-less nobody, and someone who his cousin adored. He really did't understand the opposite sex. However, some of what he had seen from the boy didn't go with what his cousin had said about him. The boy was smart, and somewhat talented.

"Then tell me why, Hyuuga-san, this is not an individual test? Why does it require an entire team just to _enter_ the Chunin exams? Our sensei once said that those who abandon others are worse than trash. Do you not agree." Naruto's voice had gotten very low, which his two best friends knew, was a dangerous sign.

If Neji had noticed the change from _Neji-san _to _Hyuuga-san_, he didn't mention it.

"Maa, maa!" Tenten interjected, seeing that a fight might break out. "I think that Lee-kun and I want to stay with you so Neji-kun is outvoted anyway! Ne, Neji-kun?" She wrapped an arm around his shoulder and shook him much to his ire.

That had Lee chuckling slightly. _Ah, the beginning to a couple who never got their happy ending. Perhaps I should play matchmaker..._

Seeing that he truly was outnumbered, Neji sighed and nodded curtly. "Fine, but don't slow me down."

"Mendokuse." The Nara grumbled, yelping when Naruto hit him over the head. "What was that for?"

"What did I tell you about that word?"

"Oh shut up."

Laughing like a maniac, Naruto took off after Neji with Lee at his heels. Pretty soon, all nine of them were _finally_ going in the right direction thanks to Neji's Byakugan.

Throughout all of this, Sasuke clenched his fists and gritted his teeth at the display that Naruto and Shikamaru, and that _weird_ other genin had given. They had looked fluid in their movements. Naruto...he and Shikamaru were supposed to be dead-lasts! Not leaders, or fighters like he was! Shikamaru was right though.

This all was very troublesome.

* * *

"Orochimaru-sama." The three Oto-nin murmured in unison as they knelt before the Snake Sennin who was currently disguised as a Kunoichi.

"Ku ku ku. Well?"

"Hai." Kin stood up to give her report. "The target, Uchiha Sasuke appears to be strong for a genin. His ninjutsu is comprised of, from what we saw, fire techniques. Unfortunately, we were not able to account for his taijutsu or genjutsu skill.

"Not a problem, Kin-chan." And for once, he was telling the truth. He needed the Uchiha for his eyes, for the legendary Sharingan. It wouldn't be too bad though, if the Uchiha joined him...at least for a while. He had gotten hold of some psych reports after Itachi had massacred the clan. It seemed the boy was out for revenge.

And for revenge, power was a must. Orochimaru could give young Sasuke all the power that he needed...for a price.

So he would wait and see what would happen after the invasion. But first, giving Sasuke his mark seemed appropriate.

* * *

"When do you think Orochimaru will strike?" Lee asked his friends in an undertone.

"Soon." Shikamaru replied tersely, on edge for another attack. "He recalled his ninja, meaning that he wants an update on everything going on in the forest, mostly Sasuke. Maybe he's getting impatient, and maybe that means he'll attack sooner."

"That's the thing though isn't it?" Naruto said softly. "We're running on _maybes_ and not definitives. _Maybe _he'll attack tomorrow. _Maybe _he'll do it within the hour. Or _maybe_ he won't attack at all. We'll never know until it happens."

"Such is the down side of time travel." Shikamaru inserted sagely.

"What are you three talking about back there?" Ino grumbled, the frustration on her face showing.

"Nothing important you know. Just about how life is too troublesome, and how we would rather be looking at clouds than doing this." Naruto grinned at the Yamanaka who huffed and rolled her eyes.

"You're like a hyper Shikamaru."

"You have no idea." Lee added softly so only the other two could hear. "Except not as smart."

"Or well rounded." Shikamaru had to have his two cents as well.

"Or calm."

"Or relaxed."

"More like lazy." Lee corrected the Nara who stuck his tongue out at him playfully.

"Or handsome." Shikamaru just had to add that one one.

"Will you guys stop?" Naruto asked, irritated that they were ganging up on him. "I am _your_ Hokage after all.

"Ouch." Shikamaru gave _his_ Hokage that one fingered salute. "After telling us that we're not allowed to play the Hokage card, you go and play it yourself. Hypocrite."

"Oh shut up." Naruto pouted. "And by the way, the ladies _love_ my ocean-blue eyes and luscious golden locks, and my Adonis-like figure."

"So remind us why you've never had a girlfriend before?"

And that was the end of that conversation.

* * *

"Hokage-sama." An ANBU in a bird mask knelt before his leader.

"Tori-kun. Report." The wizened man took a puff of his pipe before gesturing for his subordinate to begin.

"Hai! While patrolling training ground 44, the sigma team discovered the bodies of three Oto genin, all of which were destroyed through the application of a tremendous force that crushed the bodies of the victims. Around each body, minute traces of sand was found, which confirms that the killings were made by Sabaku no Gaara, the carrier to the Ichibi. We also found the corpse of a deceased Oto kunoichi, though her death was not caused by the Sand genin. As of now, it is difficult to pinpoint the cause of death without a medical expert such as Tsunade-sama."

It was no secret that Gaara, the Kazekage's son, was the Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi. Actually, it was only Konoha who hid the existence of their Jinchuuriki partially for his own safety, but also because one day Naruto would become Konoha's ace in the hole.

However, what the container of the Ichibi had done was truly disturbing. Sarutobi ran a hand over his weathered face.

"This boy, Gaara, he is a viable threat to Konoha." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The ANBU replied.

"Is he a threat to Naruto?" Sarutobi truly did not know what happened when Jinchuuriki met Jinchuuriki. Did the tailed beasts recognize each other, did they hate each other, would they use their hosts to kill each other? All of these were unanswered questions.

The ANBU hesitated before answering. "We do not know. Since Uzumaki has only utilized the Kyuubi's power to save the life of Uchiha Sasuke, we are not sure of the extent to which the Kyuubi and Uzumaki connect on. Forgive me if I ask, but is this not the reason you have called Jiraiya-sama to Konoha?"

"Yes." That was all Sarutobi was going to say on that matter.

"However, Naruto-san seems to be an able shinobi who is holding his own. From the footage that we've seen, he is a resourceful and clever ninja, one who convinced Asuma-san and Gai-san's teams to join him." Tori, or Tenzo, or Yamato or whatever you wanted to call him had been surprised to see the normally exhuberant and seemingly untalented genin sense him, and ANBU whose chakra was supposed to be nearly undetectable. He should have seen it coming after all those pranks he had pulled, dropping paint bombs over ANBU headquarters (he still had to kick Kakashi for giving the kid the location) and then running away from trained operatives in _orange _of all colors and not getting caught until _much _later. That warranted a tiny bit of respect...and a lot of ire.

The Hokage steepled his fingers. Asuma and Gai's teams huh? Of course. Shikamaru and Lee were on those teams as well. It was obvious that they would make an alliance. Still though, he was interested to see the footage, not just to check Naruto's progress, but also to see how the other Konoha genin were faring.

For a moment, there was a pause in which the Hokage was contemplating to give his stack of never-ending paperwork to the overworked ANBU in front of him. But that would be a cruel punishment to an excellent Shinobi.

"So tell me more about this Oto-genin's corpse you found in the forest this afternoon..."

* * *

Cleaning was not one of the Nara Head's past time, but since his wife insisted that he take some time to clean the _entire_ house before going to see the preliminaries of the Chunin exams, he had no choice.

If Yoshino wanted something done, then it would be done. No questions asked.

However, if it was one room he was interested in cleaning, it was his son's. In his son's room, there slept two other people at least four times a week. Naruto and Lee.

Now, the boys had insisted that they would clean their own rooms, and for the past three weeks or so, they had kept that promise. Yoshino and the other women had brought some of the younger boys to the room to show them that even though their _anikis_ were ninja now, they still had the time to keep their rooms immaculate.

As Shikaku entered the room though, he noticed it was a mess. The stress of the upcoming Chunin Exams must have gotten to them because it seemed as though they had not made an effort to lift even one finger in this room.

He sighed as he sifted through dirty laundry and empty ramen cups. _Naruto...hmpfh...you are your parents son in more than one way..._

But the elder Nara was forced to stop his cleaning when he came across a scroll that held very familiar handwriting. Shikamaru had a scroll? The closer he examined it, the more puzzled he became. It was titled _Kage Jutsus: II _

In it were a list of seemingly ordinary Jutsus that his clan used such as _Kage Shibari_ or _Kage Mane _or _Kage Nui_, but it was the notations to the side of each jutsu that made him interested.

For example, next to _Kage Mane no Jutsu_, there was a small * and a side note written in minuscule handwriting that said: _drop jutsu once Lee comes into right peripheral vision. Let Lee go to stance #4 gate 1. _There were two more ** next to that last phrase. _Don't use on genin level shinobi. For A-rank or higher, Let Lee go to stance #11 Gate 4. Naruto joins - wind, fire, or earth jutsu depending on enemy's element. For more than one opponent, use _Kage Nui_ and let Naruto use RS* or OR*. Then, I'll come in with Lightning or Water used in conjunction with shadow techniques. Work on stage two with Lee, and stage three with Naruto._

While he had no idea what _RS _or_ OR _meant, or what stances 4 or 11 were, he could only imagine that this was part of a collaborative effort to bring down opponents. What troubled him was the bit about the gates. He knew that Gai was able to open them, but for a mere _genin _to know about them, much less to utilize such a dangerous power...Why did Shikamaru even know that Lee could do that. Was this how they trained? Plus. Shikamaru was not even in a team with those two, why was he planning these attacks with them?

He read further into his son's notebook, knowing he wasn't supposed to, but marveling on how his son's mind worked. Though the Nara Clan was known for its brains, his son was a true genius. Some of the stuff that he was saying took the original _Kage Jutsu_ scroll which all Clan members were required to memorize before they became genin, and expand upon it. Since he had included _only_ Naruto and Lee, it meant that his son was serious about this friendship...this brotherhood between them. It was clear that Shikamaru was going to work only with them once all of them became Chunin. Who knew? Maybe one day they would all join ANBU together.

_Well, there goes the hope of rebuilding the Ino-Shika-Cho_. The man thought morosely. At the same time though, tradition wasn't always a good thing. Putting the dead last with the top male and female kunoichi was actually detrimental and caused tremendous rifts. From the little that he had seen of Team Seven, it was clear that Naruto was not actually dead-last, and that the top kunoichi was only book smart rather than street smart.

Shikaku turned around, now nearly done with cleaning when another little notebook caught his eye. Curious to see what other trinkets of knowledge his three favorite kids were hiding, he went over to Naruto's corner and saw what had his attention. It was a book titled _Fuujinjutsu: Colab. Nin. Tai. Kage. _

That had to mean Shikamaru and Lee were in on this. And this had to be Naruto's book. The _Property of Uzumaki Naruto_ tag gave that away. Hm, so the kid was interested in seals eh? It was in his blood after all. He knew that the Uzumaki Clan, cousin to Senju and therefore Uchiha were seal masters. Of course, that meant that Every Senju had learned this art to an extent, and Kushina and Minato were masters. However, Naruto was not privy to his lineage, at least, not that they knew of. For him to be interested in this difficult speciality was either fate, a coincidence, or the boy knew of his ancestry and wished to make his parents proud.

He picked up the book, wondering what was in it. Shikaku did not see the small, barely visible seal on the spine that lit up the second he touched it.

"Argh! What the-!" The Nara held his hand which was covered in angry red welts. The book had a seal on it? Gingerly wrapping his aching and blistering hand with some gauze, he bent down to examine the book. Indeed, there was a small seal, infused with..._blood? _It was a simple seal that all Jonin learned to repel intruders. But it was modified because of the blood. This meant that only those who Naruto trusted _implicitly_ could read the book, and he had to give those people permission first. Shikaku could only think of two other people who had any knowledge of that book existing, or of Naruto's skill with Fuujinjutsu.

He rubbed his temples wearily with his non-injured hand. Hopefully, he didn't find a secret scroll of taijutsu that Lee held because this was just too troublesome.

On the other hand though, he had a legitimate excuse to stop working.

Not that Yoshino would let him...

* * *

"For the love of-"

"Just shut up."

"I don't know which one is worse..."

"Double the fun...tch."

"How are we still sane?"

For the past ten minutes, Sasuke and Neji were competing for the position of point, constantly butting heads, and annoying each other plus the rest of the team (minus Sakura and Ino).

Between the five of them, that is, Naruto, Lee, Shikamaru, Tenten, and Chouji, each of them were amusing themselves by betting on who would back down first. Surprisingly, or not so surprisingly, everyone voted for Sasuke.

Lee looked at the rapidly darkening sky with worry. Day one was nearly over, and they hadn't found Hinata's team yet. Perhaps it was because all of them were trackers and maybe they had escaped quickly. However, the spandex-clad nin didn't want anything to happen to his friends, even if they technically didn't know each other yet.

"Neji-kun!" Lee called to gain the Hyuuga's attention. He pointed up, watching as Neji got the message.

Sasuke however, had no intention of stopping. Night hadn't truly fallen yet. They could still travel a couple more miles. So when he found himself rendered immobile courtesy of a very lazy Nara who himself had _every_ intention of stopping, he naturally wasn't pleased.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Shikamaru asked the sullen Uchiha. "When the group stops, then everyone in the group does as well."

"Hn."

"You can't talk to Sasuke-kun like that!" Sakura tried to stand up for her 'one true love' but found herself on the receiving end of a rather cold glare from Tenten.

"Listen up pinky." Sakura bristled at that name. "We agreed that we would travel as a team, one big team. Now that team is comprised of all nine of us. So when one of us is dissenting, someone has to stop him or her. So to sum it up, we have _every_ right to talk to your "Sasuke-kun" like that." She turned to said genin. "You got that, Uchiha?"

Suffice to say, Sasuke didn't really say anything, especially not after being berated by a kunoichi who he had never met, who was also currently sharpening a kunai in a very precise and frankly, scary fashion.

"Go Tenten." Naruto smirked under his breath. After dealing with Neji for so long, Sasuke was a piece of cake for her.

"We'll sleep in shifts." Neji barked. "My team will go first, Uzumaki's is next, and Nara's team is last. If we see or hear anything, we'll wake you. Understood?"

They all nodded, except for Sasuke of course, and each went to either sleep or guard. No one forgot to keep extra kunai within arms reach.

* * *

The sun rose at roughly five in the morning, taking the nine genin with it.

The most unusual thing that had happened during the night was a wayward squirrel attacking the stash of food that Chouji had. What had followed after that was a blur, but Chouji was quite certain that was blood on his hand when he woke up...

Day two had started off without a hitch, but the three time travelers were playing everything by ear for the moment. Orochimaru lurked right around the corner. At least they all had scrolls.

It was a small consolation for what might be a painful battle ahead.

"Just how big is this forest?" Ino grumbled, plucking a leaf out of her hair.

"Shut up! You don't see any of us complaining, do you?" Sakura scoffed at her rival.

While Ino did remain silent, the glares that the two girls exchanged spoke volumes.

"Women..." Shikamaru muttered.

"At least you know who yours is." Naruto ran a hand over his face, not wanted to think about such troublesome things.

"It's quiet." Sasuke spoke suddenly, stopping on a branch. Everyone followed suit, agreeing with the boy for once.

"Too quiet." Naruto murmured. Not even a bird was chirping. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_ Fifteen clones popped out, each with different tools in their hands. Naruto didn't revel in his chakra control though. Instead, he gave his clones a simple order. "Scout the forest. Look for more areas like this."

"What the..." Chouji stopped midway when he saw exactly what lay under the branches.

Blood.

On the ground, coating the trees, the leaves, nearly every solid surface.

And next to the blood...

Bodies.

Three of them, all Oto nin, throats cut, wrists slashed, and worst of all, they weren't even in rigor yet. Which meant the bodies must have been only a few hours old.

"I...feel like puking." Ino held a hand over her mouth. She couldn't bare to look at the carnage below.

Lee's eyes narrowed in anger. "Orochimaru." He hissed. "This is what he does to those he has no use for."

"Yeah, except Kabuto did the dirty work." Shikamaru spit out.

"What could have done this?" Tenten asked, a touch of anxiousness and fear clouding her voice.

No one spoke for a moment, as they were all examining the remains of what appeared to be an assassination of some sort.

"It's not _what_, Tenten-san." Naruto spoke up, his voice echoing through the forest. All eyes turned to him. "It's _whom_. One person did this, and you are right in saying that person is certainly not a regular human, therefore he or she can be referred to as a _what_."

"You can't mean-!"

Naruto cut her off with his hand. "Yes, I do."

He jumped down from his branch and landed next to one body, inwardly saying a prayer for the dead genin. "Look at the striations of the entry wounds on each body. They're all identical, and they came from the same type of tool." He knew where they came from. This was Kabuto's handy work.

"Naruto's right," Shikamaru jumped to Naruto's right. "This type of precision is different than a regular shinobi's work."

"It's medical precision." Neji surmised.

"From a scalpel no doubt." Naruto confirmed. His clones were all popping away one by one. "There are no other areas like this." Even Gaara hadn't left a blood trail after the one pile of bodies that Lee's team had found.

They heard retching coming from Sakura.

"That's..." Chouji couldn't complete his sentence.

"Barbaric? Disgusting? Inhumaine?" Naruto said with a bitter chuckle. "I'm sorry my friend, but this is the life we signed up for."

"Let's go." Neji muttered. Though he kept a relatively calm face on, he too was severely disturbed.

It wasn't surprising that no one disagreed with him.

* * *

"They are close by, aren't they?" Orochimaru asked Kabuto who was in the process of cleaning off the last of the now drying blood on his medical tools.

At the moment, the two were in a part of the forest that was close to the exit. The second that the Uchiha's team came close, they would spring a trap that would allow the Snake Sennin to capture his prey.

"Actually, they still have a good twenty miles or so to cover. Plus, with all the traps that the examiners have set up, I would give them till midday or at most, early evening for them to arrive."

The sallow skinned man frowned, but let it go. He wanted his entertainment to start sooner. "Very well then. Kabuto-kun, I think it's best if you get back to your 'team'. I'm sure they're wondering where you've gone." He paused for a moment before adding, "Oh, and cut the camera wires. I don't think Konoha needs to see this."

The bespectacled spy scoffed at the thought of those pathetic weaklings. His master was right though, he should be getting back. After all, he had told them that he had only wanted to take a leak. Plus, cutting those wires would take up some extra time.

As Orochimaru watched his right hand man leave, the feeling of anticipation was building within his body. _Soon, soon I will have those eyes...Ku ku ku._

* * *

"Someone's cut the wires!" Genma shouted, coming into the room.

"What?" Kurenai gasped. She couldn't lose contact with her kids. "Can we repair them?"

The senbon chewing jonin frowned and shook his head. "The main line is cut too. The fastest we can get anything done is in two days."

All the senseis sat forward with trepidation. They stared at the now static filled screens in fear. Fear for their children. These exams were certainly different than they had all expected...

* * *

Naruto was getting fidgety. Every so often, he would finger his kunai holster, just itching for a fight. It wasn't that he wanted Orochimaru to come, no that wasn't it. It was just that if the horrid man did arrive, it would mean that the past they had come to change would be just a bit more predictable. Plus, Orochimaru couldn't pass up on the offer of the "last" Uchiha.

"Naruto..." Lee sighed in exasperation. His leader's agitation was getting to him as well.

Naruto shot him an apologetic look and sighed himself, trying to focus on the calming effect of flying through the forest, trying to let the gentle wind lull him into a false sense of comfort.

It didn't work of course.

If anything, the scents that hit Naruto's sensitive nose felt like individual shockwaves that blurred his concentration.

He smelled _everything_. _  
_

From flowers,

to soil,

to tree sap,

to feces,

to squirrels,

to Chouji's crisps,

to snakes,

to - hang on!

Snakes?

He stopped on the branch abruptly, eyes widening as he turned in the direction that the smell of snakes was coming from.

"Guys! Watch -"

It was too late though, because the blast of wind that hit all nine of them was strong enough to knock them to the forest floor.

"_Kuso!"_ Shikamaru cursed, staggering to an upright position. He looked over to Naruto who was signaling to him and Lee with ANBU hand signs saying, _This happened last time. Be alert._

The Nara nodded, and went over to Lee who was already up and ready to go.

"What's going on?" Sakura all but cried, her voice reaching dangerously high levels.

_What do you think is going on? _Lee thought to himself in a way that was highly uncharacteristic of him, at least in this timeline.

"Neji-san!" Naruto's voice sounded like a command to the young Hyuuga who immediately stood up straighter and activated hisbloodline.

He faltered though, when he saw no human presence for a good 100 yards or so. "I...I can't-"

"Look above you!" Naruto cut across him with impatience.

Though annoyed himself, the Hyuuga did as he was told. There! He sensed something, though it was just inside his range. "Whatever that is, it's approaching rapidly." Neji warned. "Brace yourselves."

"No." Shikamaru stated as calmly as he could. "We have to retreat. If this..._thing_ could make a wind jutsu from that far, then we don't want to be anywhere near it."

"Hn. I'm not going to run away like a coward." Sasuke crossed his arms, looking remarkably like a petulant little boy.

"Listen to Shikamaru, Sasuke-san. We are mere genin. Whoever did that jutsu is not. This is not an act of cowardice, it is merely for survival." Lee added. _We'll take care of him_.

The scowl on Sasuke's face deepened, and a retort was on the tip of his tongue when Neji's cry of "Watch out!" Rang through the silent forest.

From seemingly no where, hundreds of snakes poured down, trying to latch on to the nine genin. Ino and Sakura screamed, trying to escape the snakes. Tenten on the other hand, had pulled out dozens of weapons and started slashing away at the snakes.

"Tenten-san." Naruto grunted, cutting his own snakes open only to see them pop away in a puff of white smoke. "They're summons!"

"What does that mean?" The girl huffed out, executing a complicated flip.

"It means that you can't fight them like that. Once one summon is gone, another takes its place. It's a never ending cycle!"

"So how do you stop them?" Neji asked. He was close enough to hear what his teammate and the blond boy were talking about.

Naruto paused for a moment to create about one hundred or so shadow clones before answering. "You have to fight summons with summons. That's the only way." While this was a complete lie, it might make the others realize that they were out classed.

He saw Neji and Tenten contemplating upon what he had said, and hoped to whatever God there was that they took his word.

"But how can we escape, Naruto?" Chouji joined in on the conversation as well, slamming a snake on to the tree and watching it _poof_ away.

The grin that Naruto gave him reminded the rotund boy of when Naruto used to pull all those pranks. It was a foxy grin that never failed to make Chouji smile as well, even if this was a potentially life threatening situation.

"Just leave it me, old friend." Naruto softly muttered. In a louder more authoritative voice, he yelled, "Stay back everyone!" It was time to make use of his poor chakra control. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

The other genin watched in awe, and slight jealousy (Sasuke) as not hundreds, but _thousands _of Naruto copies popped up, each with a kunai with hand. The real Naruto didn't look the slightest bit tired.

"Woah..." Tenten whistled. That kid must have a tremendous amount of chakra for him to create that amount of clones.

Shikamaru scratched the back of his head lazily and let out a yawn. "Eh? This is nothing for him. It's how he normally is. Naruto is...odd."

"I second that motion." Sakura muttered, wondering when her teammate had gotten so powerful. One glance at Sasuke told her that she wasn't the only one who was surprised at the changes in Naruto. However, what she took as surprise was actually deep-seated resentment coming from the Uchiha.

Meanwhile, Naruto was having perhaps a bit too much fun stabbing all the summons that the Hebi-teme had garnered. However, like he predicted, more and more were popping up. The snakes were also getting bigger and bigger, which meant that they were becoming more and more venomous as well. Naruto knew from the war that one bite from one of Orochimaru's snakes meant instantaneous death.

"Need a hand?" Shikamaru's voice floated towards him from his right.

"Not really." Naruto took sadistic pleasure in tying two small snakes together and flinging them into a larger one causing all three to poof away.

"Orochimaru's going to be here soon. He's not going to like us playing with his pets." Lee added from the left.

"We have to get the others to safety." Naruto murmured, carefully watching as Sasuke beat another snake down while scowling at one of Naruto's clones.

"Uchiha! Get out of the way!" Neji cried suddenly. Seconds later, a kunai, no doubt laced with poison, came hurtling out of the an area unseen right towards Sasuke.

Sasuke's eyes widened. There was no way he could get away at this rate unless - a flash of green stopped his negative thinking.

In the next instant, the Uchiha found himself being carried bridal side by the eccentric genin in green spandex.

"Are you alright, Sasuke-san?" The boy asked seriously, looking left and right to assess more possible flying kunai.

He scowled, inwardly marveling at the other boy's speed before hopping out of his arms. It was already shameful that he had to be saved by this kid, but to be carried by him too...how embarrassing.

"Fine." Sasuke ground out.

Now, Lee wasn't expecting a full "Thank You" from the Uchiha, but a grateful look or nod would have been nice. After all, he had just saved the kid from Orochimaru's clutches...hopefully.

"Let's go!" Sakura yelled, noticing how Naruto's clones were being dispelled at a fast rate, and how the snakes were about double the size of an adult.

One of the snakes caught hold of Shikamaru's legs and bit down...hard. The Nara let out a strangled cry of pain before stabbing the creature with a kunai. Luckily, it was a smaller snake, and not as venomous.

Cries of "Shikamaru!" filled the air as Naruto, Lee, and a couple others leaped to his aid.

"I'm fine." He grunted, trying to stand, but found that his leg was going numb rapidly.

"Shit." Naruto shook his head, trying to assess the situation. A couple moments later, his eyes sharpened and he looked each genin over.

"Listen here and listen now." Unknowingly, each shinobi present straightened his or her posture. "Lee and I will look after Shikamaru. You guys go and divide yourselves in two groups of three. Sakura, give us a scroll. Go to the checkpoint, tell the Senseis about what has happened, and they will help us. As long as you are all Konoha Shinobi, and in groups of three, the senseis have no choice but to clear you. The poison in Shikamaru's leg will slow this group down and we will all be susceptible to whatever is out there. Now is not the time to argue. Just GO!"

As the last word was shouted, a barrage of kunai, no doubt from the _Shuriken Kage Bunshin_technique, hailed down on them, making Naruto's point even more prevalent.

"Go!" He said again. "We'll catch up." Naruto crossed his hand over his heart. "I promise."

Though Neji and Sasuke truly wanted to argue, the look in Naruto's eyes made them stop. Sakura slowly threw both the Heaven and Earth scroll over to Lee who caught them with one hand.

"Go!" Shikamaru said firmly, standing up slowly. His leg was bleeding slightly, and the venom was coursing through his veins.

"Shika-"

"Just go!" The Nara cut Chouji off harshly. "Please." He added in a softer voice. "We'll be fine."

After several uncertain glances thrown their way, the remaining six konoha genin leaped towards safety.

Neither of the time travelers could breathe a sigh of relief though because not two minutes after the others had gone, they heard a voice, a voice they had been preparing to hear for some time now.

"Ku ku ku." Orochimaru's hiss resonated through the forest. "What do we have here?"

* * *

"Are they going to be okay?" Sakura asked Ino worridely. She hadn't wanted to leave her teammates and fellow genin, but something in Naruto's voice just made her want to trust him.

"I...I don't know." Ino replied, her voice shakey. "Shikamaru, I..." She faltered, blinking back tears. He was one of her oldest friends. If anything happened to the three of them...she didn't even want to think about it.

"I trust Naruto." Chouji said firmly. "If he says that it's gonna be alright, then I believe him."

"Yes..." Sakura didn't know why she believed in her odd teammate's words, but there was a certain aura around him that the Hokage had as well. It was that of a leader.

"The exit is up ahead." Neji's voice was tense, the three genin that they had left behind, or rather the genin they were_ forced_ to leave behind on his mind.

The six of them landed quietly taking a moment to look back, wondering if the other three were following them. No such luck.

"Let's go." Sasuke murmured, a bit less arrogantly than usual.

As they went into what they believed to be a safe haven, they didn't notice the cold gray eyes of a particular bespectacled genin watching them from the shadows.

_So the Uchiha didn't stay to greet Orochimaru-sama eh? This is going to be interesting._ Only a glint of silver could be seen as Yakushi Kabuto stepped out into the fresh air, and followed his "comrades" into the next round.

* * *

"Orochimaru." Naruto said calmly, his diction and heart-rate steady. Next to him, Lee hovered ahead of Shikamaru, protecting him.

The Sennin stepped forward from a tree across from them, dressed in an Oto Kunoichi's skin. His snake-like eyes narrowed with amusement. "What's this? The Kyuubi container? Just my luck." Orochimaru was slightly disappointed that the other two genin held no surprise on their faces at this S-ranked secret. How odd.

"So you know who I am? It's nice to know that I have a fan." Naruto smirked ever so slightly.

"The same can be said of you, _Naruto-kun_." It was Orochimaru's turn to smirk as he watched the Kyuubi kid assume an offensive stance. Maybe he should have taken the brat when he had the chance. "Now now, Naruto-kun. There's no need to fight here. I can see that your friend is hurt slightly. By the way, I didn't appreciate you injuring my precious snakes."

Naruto scoffed at the sickly sweet tone that the Sennin had. "Don't be stupid, _Hebi-san_. Toads are _much_ better than snakes."

Orochimaru made an indistinguishable noise at the back of his throat. The brat was sounding too much like his idiot teammate. He watched as the kid pulled what looked like seals out of his pouch and place them carefully on the other two and then himself. Hm. So he knew sealing eh? It seemed as though the Uzumaki legacy continued in this new generation.

What Naruto had put on all three of them was a chakra restoration seal. For Lee and himself, it would boost their levels. For Shikamaru, it would help in the healing process. While Naruto and Shikamaru both knew rudimentary healing, their control was so bad, that they couldn't even perform the most basic of the medical jutsus.

"Thanks bro." Shikamaru closed his eyes and allowed the warmth of his own power course through his veins, centering around his injuring leg, slowly soothing and healing it.

"Anytime." Naruto grimaced when he felt his stomach heat up. Yep, his companion was close to waking up, and he was not happy. _Kurama! I don't know if you can hear me or not, but calm down. Orochimaru is nothing but a fly so calm down._

The fox somehow must have gotten the message because the warmth suddenly vanished, leaving Naruto oddly cold.

"You three have potential." Orochimaru mused out loud. "Such strength, such power. Together, we could do great things. I could give you _anything_."

_So this is how Sasuke was lured to his side_. Lee thought with disgust. "Never would I join the likes you!" He snorted in derision. "I would rather die first."

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed. "Die eh? Well that's something I could arrange. After all, who will care if three nobodies like yourselves were to perish tragically in the forest...especially you, Naruto-kun."

"He's coming." Shikamaru muttered, now able to stand on his own.

"We know." The other two replied in unison.

From Lee's left, came two snakes the size of small cottage. These snakes could kill in an instant. "_Konoha Senpu!" _He cried out, kicking one in the gut while Shikamaru covered his back by trapping the other one in its own shadow.

"Move!" Naruto commanded, running through hand seals as fast as he could. "_Doton: Tsuchi Maiso!*"_ From below, the ground spiraled up, swallowing the snakes whole.

"Elemental jutsu won't work on _me!" _Orochimaru taunted, darting in and out of the branches. The man was fast, that much Naruto could acquiese. But he was the son of the Yellow Flash.

"Shika!"

"Hai_! __Raiton: Inazuma Rikiba!*"_ (Lightning Forcefield).

The Nara's jutsu forced Orochimaru to stop in his tracks to avoid electrocution. "Naruto!"

The blond placed his hand on the nearest tree and began to charge it with his chakra. This particular move was one that he and Shikamaru had perfected during the last war. The forcefield caused the enemy to stop, and Naruto's attack left them with no where else to go but down.

"_Suiton: Genzai no Gou!"* _(Torrential Current) The water mingled with the lightning creating electric charges that neared one million Joules. Orochimaru was virtual toast in a large toaster.

Shikamaru infused his element, lightning, into his fist and got ready to attack. He jumped from branch to branch, thankful for Naruto's seal, getting ready to attack. The now slightly dazed Orochimaru was out of his comfort zone enough for Shikamaru to gain an entry. "_Ju ren KONBO!*" _The ten hit combo of uppercuts and kicks that was powered by lightning shocked Orochimaru with each blow.

All three watched as Orochimaru crumpled onto a tree branch a good ten feet down.

"That was..."

"Too easy." Lee finished.

"Too right you are, genin-kun." Orochimaru's voice came from behind them. The body below transformed into an Oto genin, who was dead before Orochimaru had taken over his body.

Before the three could react, one of his snake's had tried to bite Lee in the neck, but Naruto pulled him out of the way in time, not realizing that Orochimaru had something else in mind..

"Damn it!" Shikamaru spit. He should have seen this coming.

"_Konoha Shofu!*"_ Lee cried from overhead, powering his leg with all that he could muster. It was too bad that he missed the Sennin, because seven trees below him collapsed to the ground. Naruto once again had to catch his friend from falling into the jaws of a massive snake below them.

Said man observed the three in front of him with heightened interest. One, a Nara with tremendous potential. The other, a taijutsu _genius_. And the last one. The son of the Yondaime and Uzumaki Kushina, the blood of the Senju Clan in his veins, and the Kyuubi in his gut. That boy was a virtual goldmine. The three together though...that was something that he shivered just thinking about. If he could have them, then he would be powerful beyond belief.

"You okay Lee?" Naruto asked his friend.

"Fine." Lee's eyes widened when he finally looked at Naruto. His skin whitened and untangled himself from the boy.

"Naruto..."

"What? Is there something on my- oh."

The blond ninja saw why Lee had gone ashen. Apparently, there was a blade sticking out of his shoulder.

"Ruto!" Shikamaru quickly jumped in front of his Hokage, while Lee did the same.

Orochimaru studied the two with amusement. These kids were like guards for the Uzumaki. They knew the boy's secret, and had no qualms with it. It seemed as though the boy was their leader...

"You two are lucky I didn't decide to mark any of you." Orochimaru drawled. "It would too...what's the word I'm looking for..._troublesome_, ne, Nara-_kun_? Ku ku ku."

Shikamaru tightened the hold he had on his kunai. "By now, the elders must have been alerted of your presence. There's no where to go."

"One can always go _up."_

Lee twirled in the air to throw a kunai at the new voice that had just joined. In that kunai's shadow, were two more. Luckily, one of the weapons hit Kabuto straight in the knee. The traitor managed to aim a scalpel at Shikamaru, who had no choice but to take the blow in the arm because he was supporting Naruto who was losing blood quickly.

Lee could only watch as Kabuto and Orochimaru escaped relatively unscathed while his two best friends were injured.

Naruto winced at the pain he felt from Orochimaru's blade. It wasn't _Kusanag__i_, but it was something that he recognized. _Raijin_, the lost blade of the Nidaime Hokage. "Looks like the bastard gave us a parting present." He growled through gritted teeth. With no hand signals, he created a shadow clone and ordered it to pull out the blade.

"Argh! Damn it! Crap! Shit! Fu-" Naruto's cursing was cut off by Shikamaru's hand which Naruto noticed, was bleeding.

"I'm fine." The Nara reassured his friend when Naruto looked like he was about to kill something. "We all are."

Gingerly, both Lee and Shikamaru helped their leader up, noticing that the Kyuubi was already starting to heal the wound.

"Old furry's waking up." Naruto remarked, looking at his fresh, but healing wound. "At least Orochimaru didn't get Sasuke, or mark any of use the five-pronged seal on me like last time."

"But unlike last time, you were more seriously injured than before." Lee said darkly, eyeing the blood on Shikamaru and Naruto.

"We're alive guys, that's all that matters." Naruto murmured, grimacing at the pain in his shoulder. At least he still had three days to heal.

"Yeh, that's all that matters." Shikamaru concurred.

Together, Lee and Shikamaru leaped towards the tower with Naruto, just thankful that it had been them with the injuries, and not the others.

* * *

"Congratulations! You pa- What the?" Asuma, who had just popped out of the scrolls was incredibly confused as to why Kakashi's pink haired genin was with _his_ team instead of Shikamaru.

"Asuma-sensei!" Chouji had a panicked look in his eyes. "Shikamaru, Naruto, and Lee-san...they all...they..."

_Shikamaru, Naruto, Lee? What could have happened...no...please...no..._

Asuma's sense of panic at his student's frantic words heightened when Gai came running towards him saying, "Lee and the other two, they're still in the forest! Your student was bitten by a snake Asuma! A snake! You know what this means!"

"_Kuso!" _Asuma cursed. There were only two people who used snakes, and one of them was currently trying to repair the downed camera system. That only left...

"Orochimaru." Kakashi's low, anger ridden voice filled the room. He closed his one visible eye, praying that those three were safe, that they hadn't done something stupid. _Why is it always you three?_

Anko knocked the door down, revealing that her neck was rapidly spreading with the snake Sennin's cursed seal. That confirmed the Orochimaru theory. "How the hell did that bastard get into Konoha in the first place?" She yelled, wincing as the pain increased.

All of a sudden, the tower lights activated signaling that another team had arrived. The Jonins in the room tensed, waiting for the kids to put the scrolls together. However, before they could do that, a swirl of leaves entered the so called secure room, revealing the three genin they had been worried about. Iruka, who was supposed to appear for Team Seven's unscrolling, was attached to Lee and part of the _shushin_ as well.

It was Kakashi who first saw the bloodied state of his youngest genin. Naruto was clutching his shoulder, blood pouring out of it while Lee and Shikamaru who were sporting their own injuries were trying to support him. No one asked who had executed the _Shushin._

"Naruto!"

"Uzumaki!"

"Kid!"

Various other shouts were heard, calls for medics were made, and a general state of panic was in the room.

For their part, the three genin for whom all the ruckus was being made for remained in a state of apathetic disconnect. When Kakashi placed a hand on his bleeding student, all Naruto did was huff and transfer the weight of the sword- wait...the sword?

"Naruto..." Kakashi began cautiously. "Is that..."

"Raijin?" The genin finished with a grimace. All talking ceased as everyone's eyes were on the three.

"That Hebi-teme has a terrible sense of humor." Shikamaru grumbled.

"Hebi-teme?" Asuma questioned, eyes widening in horror.

"Orochimaru." Lee confirmed, his mouth twisted in a disgusted manor. "Naruto saved me, and got himself injured."

"Lee..." Gai started, but Naruto cut him off.

"I'm fine, Gai-sensei. Really. This is nothing but a flesh wound. And as for the sword." He twirled it in his good hand. "We got a piece of history back today."

It was then that the Hokage himself burst through the doors and saw the state of his three most mysterious genin and the weapon that one of them was holding.

"Naruto!" Hiruzen gaped at the boy. "What in the world?"

"Can I just say something?" Naruto muttered knowing that all ears were on him.

"This is why toads are _so_ much better than snakes."

* * *

_*Suiton: Bakusei Shoha : _Water Style: Exploding Water Shock Wave

*_Suiton: Daibakuryu : _Water Style: Furious Current

*_Doton: Doryuheki :_ Earth Style: Mud Wall

*_Doton: Doro Mayu : _Earth Style: Mud Cocoon

*_Encore une fois : _Once again

*_Konoha Senpu : _Leaf Whirlwind

*_Kage Shibari no Jutsu :_ Shadow Paralysis

*_RS : _Rasen Shuriken

_*OR :_ Odama Rasengan

*_Doton: Tsuchi Maiso_ : Earth Style: Earth Burial

*_Konoha Shofu : _Leaf Rising Wind

* * *

_No flames please :)_

_Next update will either be on July 12th, or July 19th._


	7. Troublesome, Slightly Sadistic Gingers

**Wooh! Thanks for the TREMENDOUS response! I'm back. Right, before we get on, couple questions to address.**

**1) Will Naruto keep Raijin?**

**A) Technically speaking, the sword doesn't exist in the Manga. But since it is the Nidaime Hokage's and therefore belonged to one of Naruto's distant relatives, then why not? And I know that it was Rokusho Aoi who had the sword...but since it's my story...let's just say that the traitor met with an unfortunate..._accident_ courtesy of Orochimaru.**

**2) Will the Jonin senseis be overprotective?**

**A) These are Shinobi. Trained killers. But also, they have a softer side. I would imagine that they would _like_ to be overprotective, but know where to draw the line.**

**3) What about your other stories?**

**A) Right now, I honestly can't bring myself to finish those. I want to focus on this one, and then I'll see about the rest. That being said, if any one would like to adopt the other three unfinished one's go right ahead. Just ask me first.**

**4) Will Shikaku be the first to know about their time traveling?**

**A) Read on and you will see...**

**5) Will you describing each match in detail? (Please don't)**

**A) Don't worry! I have no patience to do so, so I will give the most words to those matches that I think are the most important.**

**6) Can I get your name, address, and phone so I can kiss you and tell you how amazing of an author you are?**

**A)...No...But thanks...I think...**

**A couple of my more astute readers saw the mistake I made with the Heaven/Earth scrolls. Sorry! In my rush to publish the last chapter I overlooked it!**

**And, Kirigakure falls under the jurisdiction of the Mizukage. He/She is the leader of it. - To the reviewer who thought otherwise...**

**This is a looongg chapter...just to let you know. It's over 16,000 words...**

**Enough from me! Just enjoy the seventh installment of _A Wrinkle in Time..._**

* * *

Recovery was not fun.

Recovery with your two best friends though, was amazing. After Shikamaru had the rest of the little remaining venom pumped out of him, and both he and Lee were cleaned up of their cuts and bruises, they joined Naruto in the hospital wing, (which he was still in despite his protests and already healed shoulder), and chatted about mundane things, or at least, they seemed like mundane things to the guard overseeing them.

Of course, after the inevitable questioning from the Jonins and Hokage, the official story was that the team of three were bringing Shikamaru back, and got slightly delayed due to enemy genin. As far as the other genin knew, besides Shikamaru, no other person had been injured.

Luckily, Team Eight, due to their superior tracking skills, had reached the tower much earlier than they had in the previous timeline, therefore none of them had to take part in this ordeal.

On the other hand, the three time travelers were subjected to an expected round of questions, that left their questioners with more questions about the three than answers.

_Two Nights Earlier_

"Uzumaki, we're going to elevate your arm and close the wound." One of the ANBU medics told him as two others contained his blood loss.

The boy sighed and nodded, not bothering to tell them that his wound was already healing, and the Kurama had lessened the pain by a significant degree.

A couple feet away, Lee and Shikamaru stood, worry evident in their faces.

Behind those two were the other Konoha Jonins as well as the Hokage. All of their minds were no doubt swirling with tumultuous thoughts, the main one being as to how Orochimaru was able to sneak into the Exams.

Naruto gritted his teeth when the medic placed his hand over the wound, infusing it with green chakra. This was the part that actually hurt the most. When the injury was finally bandaged, Naruto got up nonchalantly and made for the door, happy to get out of the sterile room.

"Not so fast, Naruto." Kakashi frowned, placing a restraining hand on his student's good shoulder. "I think we all want to know just what happened back there."

The boy sighed as he looked into his teacher's eyes. There was a look of resignation in his eyes, Kakashi noted, like he knew he wasn't going to escape but tried anyway. The cyclops hid a snort. He had been like that as well.

Three chairs were placed behind the genin, and they were compelled into taking a seat, not looking the slight bit fazed at being in front of ten Elite Jonins and the Hokage himself. If anything...they looked tired, but ready for this.

"You three..." The Hokage began softly, taking off his hat and smoothing his wrinkled forehead. It was _always_ these three that gave him headaches in recent days. Naruto had been bad enough, but when you added the other two...

Lee couldn't help but feet a pang of compassion for the wizened man. No matter his faults in the past, he truly believed that he had done what was best for Naruto, and the village. This man had a huge burden on his shoulders, and they would try their hardest to prevent his death.

"Just what exactly happened?"

Shikamaru glanced at Naruto who just huffed out air from his nostrils but nodded ever so discretely.

"We had teamed up with Team Seven, as well as Gai-sensei's team because we figured that the more the merrier. Anyway, nothing out of the ordinary happened until this afternoon. We were ambushed by snakes, which Naruto determined were summons. The most famous snake summoner is Orochimaru, so logically, that's who was attacking us."

"Anko-san is also a snake summoner, but she obviously wouldn't attack us." Lee added, addressing the scantily dressed woman.

"Don't be so sure of that kiddo." She muttered under her breath, having still not forgotten how Naruto had embarrassed her. The feeling had reduced though, as she was sure these kids had stopped Orochimaru.

"Before that though," Naruto spoke for the first time. "We came across a massacre. There were three Oto genin all of them were drained of blood and just left there for the elements to take them."

He saw the Hokage exchange glances with the now visible Yamato-taichou a.k.a. the ANBU Tori. So they already knew about that...

"There was something else though." Naruto said suddenly. "The genin, they were killed by someone who had medical training."

"How can you be so sure?" Genma inquired, genuinely curious.

A shadow crossed Naruto's face.

_Slashed wrists, slashed throat, and still smiling._

_"Genma-senpai!" Naruto tried to stop the bleeding, but he knew it was too late._

_"Genma-kun!" Shizune screamed, throwing herself over his dying body._

_"S..s..sor...sorry, Shi-chan, I...co...couldn't..." He coughed blood up, using whatever strength he had left to speak. _

_With one final smile, Genma died, leaving behind a trail of agony..._

_Because that's how you were killed, Senpai. You died protecting Shizune nee-chan._

"When I was younger, I was in the hospital a lot. One of the doctors, Yakushi, or something like that, showed me how the way to both sever tenketsus, which incidentally, are located over arteries that, if cut, render a shinobi's ability to use chakra useless and deplete them of chakra very quickly so that they die in five minutes, give or take."

Naruto didn't know when he had become such a good liar, and he didn't like that he could manipulate people so well. True, he _had_ been in the hospital multiple times as a child, but he had never met Kabuto's kin before. But, it wouldn't hurt to drop a few hints about Kabuto. His adoptive mother had actually been a Yakushi, so knowing the Hokage, he would have someone investigate the slightest detail, hence digging up Kabuto's name.

The silence in the room was chilling.

"And do you think," Kakashi asked his student, a serious look in his eye, "That it was Orochimaru who did this?"

The boy tensed, knowing that how he worded his answer was going to be very important. "We do not know. While it is entirely possible that Orochimaru could have killed those genin, it doesn't make sense as to _why."_

Of course, the Hokage didn't need to know that they already knew why Orochimaru killed his own people_. _

The use of _we_ instead of _I_ did not go unnoticed.

Sarutobi mentioned for them to go on.

"We, the nine of us, were cut down by a very powerful Wind Jutsu, a jutsu that none of us had the ability to do." Lee continued. "And then, without preamble, we were attacked by snake summons. There were hundreds, maybe thousands of them."

Gai didn't like the way his star pupil's eyes looked. They looked so weary, so..._old..._so un-youthful.

"We tried fighting them off, but it was futile. The more we "killed", the more of them popped up." Shikamaru nearly yawned, but stopped himself knowing that _his_ hokage was watching him. "And then I was bitten."

"That's it?" Asuma asked incredulously, over reacting _ever_ so slightly. "You were bitten! End of story?"

Hiruzen looked at his son with concern. Perhaps he was being unreasonable with his student, and judging by the scowl on said student's face, he thought so as well.

"No." Shikamaru said curtly. "That's not it. And the wound in Naruto's shoulder proves that the story had a different end."

The jonin in the room winced. The kid sounded almost exactly like his father when Shikaku was angry. They didn't have to raise their voices at all, but it was their tone that made the Naras so scary. It was that of a parent scolding their child...in a way that made you feel stupider than the village idiot...

"Shika couldn't stand." Lee stated. "The poison was spreading rapidly, and his leg was swelling as well."

"What happened next is something that all of you can infer." Naruto's sharp eyes pierced every one of the people in the room and rested on the Hokage. He twirled Raijin expertly, examining his ancestor's sword as he did so. "The others left because we told them to. Shikamaru is _our _responsibility, and we take care of our own." He sounded _exactly_ like an ANBU leader at that moment which caused many in the room to start thinking that maybe these kids...no, that was impossible.

"But the other gen-"

"Wouldn't be able to deal with what we dealt with." Lee interrupted Aoba forcefully which caused Gai to stare at his student in confusion once again. He had never heard such a forceful and authoritative tone from his pupil before.

Feeling that all eyes were on him, the spandex clad man/boy sighed. He kept forgetting that he wasn't twenty-three anymore. He couldn't talk like a twenty-three year old. However, the damage was done. What he said couldn't be taken back.

Luckily, his Hokage came to his rescue.

"We are...different. We are stronger than those in our generation due to hard work. Some may call us...prodigies." Naruto paused and looked at his brothers in battle, and saw that they approved of his wording. Hiding their abilities, well, _most_ of them, was pointless. A bitter laugh escaped Naruto, one that was filled with regret and _what ifs_, but the people of the present weren't aware of that.

"For years, people underestimated us. With Shikamaru, it was because he was plain lazy. With Lee, it was because he couldn't do ninjutsu or genjutsu." He took a deep breath, staring the current Hokage right in the eye. "And me? Well, you all know why."

The people in the room flinched.

"Before anyone says anything else, yes." Naruto gestured to the other two. "They know."

"I figured it out a long time ago." Shikamaru suppressed glaring at Sarutobi. Naruto had grown up this way because of _him. _Perhaps he was being too harsh on the old man, but the facts could not be disputed. "The glares, the name-calling, some of the senseis purposefully failing him. It all made sense once I learned his birth date. October 10th, the day the Kyuubi attacked." Indeed, in his timeline, Shikamaru had known about the Kyuubi after the Chunin exams, and that's when he had confronted his father who had told him the rest of the story. When Naruto finally told everyone about his burden, no one could look at their beloved village in the same way again.

Lee paused for a a few moments, wondering how he was going to word what he wanted to say.

"And when Naruto-kun told me, I blamed _you_, Hokage-sama." Lee murmured quietly, unapologetic in his statement. Naruto shot a surprised glance at his friend, wondering how he could have said that.

Silence.

Deafening silence.

The old man recoiled as if slapped, his old regrets coming to haunt him. In that moment, the Hokage looked his full age, down to the very last wrinkle. Mutterings from the Jonin were breaking out.

"Lee! You can't-" Gai started to berate his student though he truly didn't want to before his leader cut him off.

"No, Gai-kun. Lee is absolutely correct." He said softly much to everyone's surprise. "I...I have failed you, Naruto. In so many ways." He bowed his head at the child who should not have suffered like he did. No parents, no friends, no family. _He_ had caused Naruto to grow up in isolation. _H__e_ had told the village about the sealing. It _was_ his fault.

Naruto could feel his heart in his throat right now. He sent a quelling look at Lee who didn't regret his words in the least.

"Stop it, Jiji." Naruto stood quickly and rushed to Sarutobi, tears threatening to spill over. "Stop it." When the Hokage's head lifted, he saw a sad smile on the face of his pseudo-grandson. "What's done, is done. I will agree that what Lee said has some merit to it, but I'm a ninja now, a shinobi of Konoha. Kyuubi or not, I'm here, and I'm going to stay _dattebayo!"_

A true smile spread over the blond's face. It felt good to say the childhood phrase he was so famous for.

"Naruto..."

"Like I said, what's done is done. However, what we do need to focus on is the present." Naruto turned and pointed at Shikamaru.

The Nara bowed deep, but at this point, the others weren't sure if was to Sarutobi, or Naruto. The type of loyalty these three showed to each other was like that of those who had suffered together, and knew each other better than they knew themselves.

"Like Naruto said, we are different. We are stronger than the others, and I have no qualms in saying this. Though we have hid this strength for some time now, we knew that if anyone faced Orochimaru, it would have to be us. I believe though, that the time has come to stop hiding." _Most of our skills_.

"Orochimaru left Konoha because he was found experimenting with human body parts." Nobody asked Lee where he had found this information. It wasn't common knowledge to genin, and Jonin archives were most definitely not available to the lowest rank of Shinobi. "We believe that he is after Sasuke-san."

"For his Sharingan." Naruto added, letting what they had just told everyone sink in.

"Kami!" Genma exclaimed. "He wants...wants to have the eyes that copy everything...and become..."

"The ultimate ninja." Kakashi finished grimly.

Naruto nodded, his expression pained. "Kakashi-sensei, you proved to the world that the Sharingan can be transplanted into a non-Uchiha. Think about it. With just one eye, you are one the most feared Shinobis out there. However, if Orochimaru gets _both_ eyes...and if we add that into his already powerful repertoire...he believes that he can become invincible."

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt like he was a million years old. First, _genin_ were berating him on how he treated Naruto, and now _this_. He had made many a mistake in his lifetime, but Orochimaru was probably the worst, after the Kyuubi incident. He had been too lenient on his favorite student, too trusting that banishment was the best thing for him, and not execution.

"Anyway," The blond continued airily as if the last ten minutes hadn't just happened. "I got stabbed with Raijin and Orochimaru let us off easily I suppose. He said that we were lucky that we didn't receive his mark." Naruto glanced at Anko, saddened by her stricken expression. He could remove that pesky mark if he wanted to...No. He _should_ remove that mark from her. It was limiting her, both physically and mentally. The only bulwark in Naruto's way was approaching the woman and convincing her to let him touch her...

The room was silent, but everyone was looking at the three genin in a new light. These three weren't genin, that much was transparent. What they were saying, what they had done, pushing back Orochimaru like they did, (though no one knew how), they were as skilled as they said they were. If anything, these kids were _at least_ Chunins.

"Hang on," Asuma began, looking at Shikamaru as he spoke. "How come Shikamaru was nearly healed when he came in? If that bite was as bad as you said it was, then why did the medics not take a longer look at him?"

When both Lee and Shikamaru sighed and pointed at the blond, he sheepishly grinned and pulled something out of his pack.

"Seals?" Genma looked at the piece of paper, not making heads or tails as to what it was.

"A chakra enhancing seal to be exact." Naruto corrected the jonin. "I store some of my own chakra in them, and whenever I need a boost, or any of us needs a boost, I use it. I gave one to Shikamaru and Lee before we fought Orochimaru."

"But that doesn't explain how he healed so quickly!" Asuma argued.

Naruto sighed and ripped off his bandage much to the ire of the medics. "Look." He pointed at his wound. "There's only congealed blood. No wound, right? Even though the doctors healed me, there should be _at least _a mark right?"

The others looked carefully at his shoulder. The boy was right!

_It's like when he was wounded during the Wave mission._ Kakashi mused._ The Kyuubi heals him._

"The fox, whether he likes it or not, can't have his jailer getting hurt. Even if I don't use the Kyuubi's chakra, his presence in my body is enough to enhance all of my senses. This is why, for seals like these, the people who receive them, their bodies heal faster. My chakra can be both volatile, and soothing. Because of its potent nature, if someone who is comes in contact with it via this seal, their own healing process gets better. For an uninjured person, it'll raise their chakra levels by at least three percent. Trust me, Lee and Shika don't have the Kyuubi's chakra inside of them. I planned this thing out for ages before perfecting it, and even then these two are the only ones who have ever used them."

Still, the others looked skeptical and slightly alarmed that someone who's handwriting was _atrocious_, was designing seals that actually worked, written in perfect calligraphy.

Lee shook his head, knowing that a demonstration was in order.

Before anyone knew what he was doing, he grabbed a kunai and slashed his palm open not even blinking at the sting.

Ignoring the looks of shock, he gestured for Shikamaru to throw him a seal, which the Nara did. Placing it on his wounded palm, Lee had Naruto activate it.

The seal glowed blue, and everyone felt Naruto's chakra throughout the room, flowing into Lee's palm. Seconds later, Lee showed everyone his now, almost healed hand.

"That's how Shikamaru is fine, Asuma-sensei. Naruto-kun's got our backs."

Silence permeated the room. Questions were running through the Jonins' minds faster than the speed of lightning, but no one voiced any of them.

Lee twitched in his seat.

Naruto twiddled his thumbs.

Shikamaru stared at the ceiling.

"Naruto..." The Hokage's soft voice echoed through the room. "Is it okay if we examine this seal? If what you say is true, then we might be needing your help later on."

The blond just grinned at dumped about fifty of the seals into the elderly man's hands. "Knock yourself out Jiji! I have plenty more, plus the others that I made!"

"You have others?" Sarutobi asked. "Wait, don't answer that question. Of course you do. You are the number one, hyperactive, knuckleheaded, most unpredictable ninja after all."

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto pouted at the man who smiled back. "You said you wouldn't tell him about that name!"

"And you said that you would stop hiding things from me." The cyclops retorted.

"I never said th-" Naruto watched his teacher poof away with round eyes. "Hey! Come back! Kakashi-sensei! KAKASHI-SEN-"

"Shut up, Ruto." Shikamaru placed a hand over his friend's mouth, grinning as he did so. "Kumo can hear you from here."

The Hokage chuckled at Naruto's antics. It was good to see the boy without his cheerful mask on, but it was even better to see the boy being cheerful without his mask. He watched as Lee ruffled the younger boy's hair, and how Naruto called him "Bushy Brows", and how Shikamaru just sighed in his chair muttering an audible _troublesome_ only to have Naruto bop him over the head for using that word._  
_

"Alright then." Sarutobi clapped his hands together. "Today was...informative to say the least." The boys snapped to attention. "We will take into account everything that you have just said, and execute a plan to apprehend the traitor." The man beckoned Tori over as well. "And have your team investigate wayward medics. Start with Yakushi." He muttered in an undertone, not knowing that Naruto could hear him.

As the Hokage and his subordinates turned to leave, Naruto called, "Oi! What about this sword?"

The old man looked back, a soft smile on his face as he saw his favorite genin wielding...or rather, waving around his sensei's sword. Sarutobi said nothing until he reached the door. "Keep it."

Naruto sputtered, looking at the magnificent sword like it was a hot poker. "But..."

"Now now, Naruto." Sarutobi chided him gently. "I said, keep it. After all, it is yours by right of conquest...in a way."

He left the room before Naruto could contest the issue, finally feeling a semblance of peace running through him. "It's yours by birth Naruto. Use it well."

The Hokage didn't know, or rather, couldn't care less that the Jonin behind him minus Kakashi were finally understanding what his final statement meant.

"The blond hair!"

"Senju?"

"The blue eyes!"

"Namikaze!"

"Well damn..."

"The freakin' _dattebayos!"_

_"_Uzumaki!"

_"The TOAD comment!"_

"His last name!"

"I already said his last name idiot..."

"His birthday!"

"The sword!"

They turned to Kakashi who popped back in, and was astutely ignoring them, which only proved their theory correct.

"How did we not make the connection?"

Back in the room, Naruto smirked as he sealed his new sword in a scroll. Throughout all the confusion and excitement, they had forgotten to ask a very important question.

_Why are toads better than snakes?_

* * *

That was two days ago however.

The three of them didn't care about what they had revealed to the elite ninjas. They knew that what they had revealed would be better for Konoha in the long run. If they raised suspicion, then so be it. Plus, some recognition early on would help Naruto regain his reputation and status as a _hero_ earlier. It felt good to finally let go of the tension that they had been feeling. Hopefully, with this new information, the invasion wouldn't result in as many losses as last time, the main one being the Hokage.

As of yesterday, Naruto was officially discharged from his pris-room. Thankful to be moving again, the three genin met up with the six who they had made to flee. All of them were worried that they hadn't seen their friends/acquaintances/rivals for a long time, but after hearing the cover story that the Hokage had given, they were appeased for the time being.

The preliminaries were set to start tomorrow, as that was when the five days would be up. It really sucked to be the teams coming in tomorrow and then learning that you had to fight right after.

Obviously, Gaara's team was first. Of course, with a motto of _kill thy enemy_, it was hard not to be first

At the current moment, Naruto, Shikamaru, and Lee were lounging about lazily in the area designated for the remaining Konoha nin. Though their postures were casual, their eyes were taking in the twelve genin besides themselves carefully, especially keeping an eye out on Kabuto. His teammates were irrelevant.

The silver haired "genin" was talking with his teammates, people who died in the war no doubt, casually laughing at something one of the others had said. However, no one saw how the laughs or smiles didn't reach his eyes, or how Kabuto would sneak glances at Shika, Lee, and Naruto every so often.

Kabuto believed that they hadn't been able to see his face when he had appeared during the fight with Orochimaru, it had been hooded after all. Normally, he would be right, but obviously the three time travelers knew who the traitor was. He probably wished to eliminate them as soon as he could, but was holding off for his master's orders.

"He's looking at us again." Lee muttered, popping a grape into his mouth.

"Pedophile." Shikamaru grunted, resisting the urge to flick a kunai at the man's jugular so that Kabuto would end once and for all.

"Maa, maa." Naruto gazed at the ceiling, before lowering his gaze to his best friends. "Don't worry, we'll kill him." He said this as casually as if he was describing the weather.

Though nonchalant about the subject now, Naruto had been scared and disgusted about killing at first. However, training with Jiraiya had forced him to turn into a boy from a man. Though Naruto never revealed when he had his first kill, and was content to let people think it was during the war, it had been during a raid near Kirigakure when he was fourteen that Naruto had stabbed a man - _a rapist_, in the gut, severing a couple arteries, and leaving him there to die.

Afterwards, he had felt so sick in what he had done, that he had thrown up which had caused Jiraiya to comfort his Godson and explain to him why a shinobi killed. Of course, Naruto had then vowed to never kill a soul again which the war had negated.

Naruto didn't like killing, but Kabuto was a different story. That man was responsible for so much pain, so much suffering...it would be a sin _not_ to kill him.

"What about Sasuke?" Lee asked in a low voice. The Uchiha was sitting in a corner, turning his Sharingan on and off, no doubt trying to gauge how much chakra he was draining. Avenger though he may be, the boy also had an exceptionally sharp mind.

Shikamaru sat up a bit straighter. "We prevented him from being bitten, and that has changed the game quite a bit. Without the seal, he's free of Orochimaru's influence."

"But for how long?" Naruto muttered darkly. "Sasuke is drawn to power just how a moth is attracted to a flame. The second Orochimaru approaches him, and we know he will, he'll take any chance he gets."

The other two regarded Naruto silently.

"Do we let him go?" Shikamaru asked, his voice devoid of emotion. "Or do we force him to stay."

This time, Naruto kept his mouth shut. The answer to that question had so many different layers to it. Sasuke's behavior was predictable, but at the same time, because they had changed the future so much, he could take another path.

Shikamaru and Lee interpreted Naruto's silence correctly and dropped the issue. They would deal with Sasuke when the proper time arose.

"And Hayate-san?" Lee piped up, remembering that the man would be proctoring their exams tomorrow. "Tomorrow, the prelims will be over. After that, we have to keep a close eye on him."

Naruto nodded, closing his eyes and tapping his fingertips together. "What happens tomorrow will define our actions for at least the next month. Hopefully, we will get our old opponents. Shikamaru gets Kin, I get Kiba, and Lee, you get Gaara." His face turned into a grimace as he turned to his second in command. "Just make sure that Gaara doesn't crush your arms and legs please. I really don't want to lose you when we've just been given a second chance."

Lee's eyes softened, and he placed a hand on Naruto's shoulders. "Believe me Hokage-sama. Tomorrow is not going to be the Preliminary exam that we remembered. We will make it our own, and I'm sure, that it will go down in the books as one of the most historical events for the generations of the future!"

Shikamaru placed two fingers on his temple and sighed. "Lee, that's what we don't want. We've gotten too much notice, maybe a little less attention would be nice."

Unfortunately, all three knew that Shikamaru's last statement was already thrown out the window. Whether they liked it or not, the three of them, especially Naruto would be scrutinized very carefully tomorrow.

And unfortunately, Lee would be correct.

* * *

The new dawn was highlighted by a brilliant sunrise. Streaks of red and gold filtered in through the windows highlighted three empty beds.

While the other genin were fast asleep, as the Prelims didn't begin until nine that morning, Naruto, Shikamaru, and Lee were currently in the rec room with a couple other teams. Though it was only five thirty in the morning, a shinobi learned how to wake up on a seconds notice, hence they were very light sleepers. The war had all but eliminated sleep for everyone, and old habits died hard.

But in a time of relative peace, all the villages, especially Konoha had given their genin a bit more of a relaxed life than the previous generation. This was actually making the new generation _less_ prepared for war if it broke out. Even the older shinobi were out of practice ever so slightly. This is why the Invasion was so devastating, and why Pein could attack much easier. After that, every nation was in a state of war.

Shikamaru nodded respectfully to a Mizu nin before taking a seat next to his best friends.

"I don't like this." The Nara commented suddenly.

Lee just sighed and shook his head. "We knew this day would come, but to actually be here, to have changed so much already, it is..."

"Frightening." Naruto finished, taking a bite out of his rice ball.

It was at that moment that Gaara's team walked in and a solemn silence descended over the genin. Sand was trickling out of Gaara's gourd. Teal eyes locked with Naruto's own just for a split second, a sneer forming on Gaara's face. Naruto simply ignored the younger version of his "sibling" and nodded at him which probably confused Gaara.

Naruto felt his stomach warming up and knew that Kurama was acknowledging Shukaku. **Idi...**

"Ruto?" Shikamaru asked, concerned about the expression on the blond's face, tearing his eyes away from Temari.

"It's nothing Shika." Naruto frowned, certain that he had heard Kurama say something. "Furry here is not too pleased that his youngest sibling is present."

"Ahh."

"Has he woken?" Lee inquired. "Kyu...Kurama?"

Naruto felt the seal warm once again and chuckled. "Not quite. But I think he might be happy...or something like that, because you called him by his name."

"For so long we believed that the tailed beasts are masses of volatile chakra." Shikamaru muttered.

"Which they are." Naruto affirmed, remembering how corrosive Kurama's chakra was before he had learned to purify it.

"But you and Bee-san proved otherwise." The Nara continued. "They are forces of _good,_ if the Jinchuuriki wills them to be so."

"It's not so easy, or that black and white though." Naruto remembered all the battles he had with the kitsune. From wanting to take over his body, to trying to kill him, to Naruto defeating him, to using his chakra..."It's a struggle. But once you have something like this on your side..." He scowled slightly.

The other two nodded, understanding what Naruto was trying to say. This was why Madara and Obito were unstoppable. After Bee had died, Naruto was the only one left, the only one of his "siblings" to survive. Madara and Obito had eight tailed beasts on their side.

"Can we save the others?" Lee spoke, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Akatsuki is in the building block stage at the moment. If we can save even one more Jinchuuriki, then we would have an advantage.

Naruto contemplated what his friend had just said. Could they? Gaara was a sure shot, they had to save him and Shukaku. Utakata-san? He hadn't passed until after Naruto had come back from his training trip, so they had a little bit of time. Yugito-san was also another possiblity. She was pretty close to Bee, from what he had heard. Roshi had also been killed by Akatsuki, and in all honesty, Naruto did want to save the man. Though he hailed from Iwa, he was a good guy, and Son Goku was pretty damn amazing.

Yagura was being controlled by Madara at this time, and so was Isobi. He didn't know if the Reign of Terror in Kiri was over, but judging by the genin in the exams, it might have been. This meant that Yagura was already gone. Han...had seemed likable. The giant man was a pretty chill person, if you discounted the fact that he supposedly hated humanity. Fu was about his and Gaara's age, and he wanted save her and bring her back from that detestable village of hers. Takigakure, if he remembered correctly.

"All of them were killed by Akatsuki, except for Bee and obviously me. Akatsuki doesn't have the momentum that it would have in the coming years. I think that it's possible to bring a couple more, especially Utakata-san, Fu, and Yugito-san to our side. The Yondaime Mizukage is...useless for lack of a better word, and the others, besides Bee and Gaara are from Iwa." Naruto stroked his chin, tempted to ask the Mizu nin who their Mizukage was at the current time.

"Iwa huh?" Shikamaru narrowed his eyes. "But they must hate Iwa...and Konoha. There's our problem."

"One of them hates humanity in general." Naruto deadpanned.

"Oh."

It was at that moment that more and more genin started coming into the room. They must have been talking for longer than they realized, because the sun had risen higher in the sky.

And before they knew it, the remaining teams, including a team from Mizu which had staggered in at the last possible second, were being ushered into the arena where the senseis and Hokage were present.

The Konoha Jonins were not at all surprised to see their three most intriguing genins coming in together. What they were surprised to see though, was the downright _sinister_ looks on their faces as they took in their potential opponents.

"Why do I feel as though today is a day we'll never forget?" Kurenai asked, shivering slightly.

No one bothered to answer her, as they all shared her sentiments.

* * *

Sarutobi glanced at the thirty or so genin that remained. Nearly half the teams had been eliminated, reducing the number of competitors significantly. He waited for all of them to quiet down before speaking.

"Congratulations on passing the second stage of the exam." Some of the genin flinched as his eyes passed over them. "However, your real test begins here. No longer are you within your teams. Now, this is an individual test. You will be forced to fight with other genin, as well as genin from your own village."

"From our own village?" A Suna nin asked, shooting Gaara a furtive look.

Hiruzen followed the genin's gaze to the bloodthirsty Jinchuuriki and resisted the urge to flinch. He reminded himself to thank Iruka for showing Naruto the power of love. Otherwise, his favorite genin could have turned out like the red head. "Yes. And the other villages as well. Does anyone know why?" He eyed Naruto as he said this, happy that the boy just smiled at him and tapped his nose knowingly.

"It's an excuse for war." Surprisingly, it was the quiet Shino who said this.

The Hokage nodded at the Aburame. "Exactly. We are in times of Peace as of now. Konoha has treaties with each of your villages. Thanks to the efforts of the new government in Kiri, and the diplomatic efforts of the future Mizukage , the relationship between our two villages has improved drastically." He gestured to the Mizu genin and Jonin.

The trio looked at each other in surprise. The future Mizukage? Mei-san? She hadn't been at the previous exam, and it wasn't exactly clear when she had become Mizukage. True, none of the other major Villages had been there last time. It was really only Konoha and Kusa, a.k.a. Oto. It was entirely possible that Yagura's regime had been overthrown earlier than they had thought.

Sarutobi clapped his hands together. "Now then! Every genin is to go their Village's designated area with their Jonin instructor. Disperse!"

Kakashi wasted no time in placing and arm under Naruto's armpits and nearly dragging him to where Sasuke and Sakura were.

_He's grown_. The Jonin thought. Over the last few months of being his teacher, the blond had grown in height and skill. Or just height really, because the skill had been there for a long time.

"I could walk you know." He grumbled, ignoring the snickers from Lee and Shikamaru coming from a few feet away.

"Yes, but we don't want you running away!" Kakashi grinned under his mask, trying to rile the boy up. A scowl was all he got from Naruto, but that would have to do.

"In all seriousness though." The Jonin glanced at each of his students. "Good luck, because Hokage-sama was correct when he said that the villages would be pitted against their own. If one of you fights any of them," He gestured to the other Konoha genin, "Try your best to win. This is no longer about the team, it's every man for themselves. And if you fight someone from our team, then just know that I'll be rooting for neither of you!"

The way Kakashi said that made the three rewind those words in their heads to comprehend his statement. "Got it?"

"Hai Sensei!" Three voices chorused, though Sasuke's was very quiet.

Kakashi smiled again and turned back to the arena. "Well, don't die!"

"Don't Sakura." Naruto spoke before the confused girl could question their Sensei. "It's his way of letting us know that he cares." He kicked the older man in the shin...just because he could.

Down in the arena, Gekko Hayate coughed slightly and spoke in a raspy voice. "I'm this part of the exam's proctor. My name is Gekko Hayate. If I decide that one of the competitors is a clear winner, I will stop the match." He looked around, noticing that everyone was silent. "If there are no questions-"

"Wait sir!" Kabuto's voice echoed through the arena. "I..." He looked around, pretending to be sheepish or scared. "I wish to forfeit."

Sarutobi watched as Naruto, Shikamaru, _and _Lee _all_ narrowed their eyes at the genin, not looking the least bit surprised.

"What's your name?" He asked, ready to check him off the roster.

Kabuto looked at the Hokage, hiding a smirk. "Kabuto Hokage-sama, Yakushi Kabuto."

At the name, the Konoha Jonins snapped to alert, their eyes moving from Naruto to the older teen, trying to see if the blond recognized him at all.

By the way Naruto was reacting, the older genin was a person of interest. Yakushi. Yes, Sarutobi did recognize that name. His mother...adoptive mother...had been killed, and he was left alone, mostly volunteering in the Hospital. Naruto had said that the Oto-genin were killed by scalpels. Perhaps this boy...

Would Orochimaru really recruit a Konoha nin?

The boy probably hadn't been loyal to Konoha for a long time now...

"Alright Kabuto-kun." He snapped his fingers and Genma appeared by his side instantly. "This Jonin will escort you out."

Kabuto looked at Genma in what appeared to be a grateful way, not knowing that from now until the final exams, his movements would be monitored via ANBU 24/7.

Hayate looked at the first two names, showing no emotion whatsoever. "First match: _Akado Yoroi vs. Uchiha Sasuke!"_

"Good luck Sasuke-kun!" Ino and Sakura said at the time which caused both of them to glare at each other. Kakashi gave the boy a pat on the shoulder while Naruto nodded at him, showing his sportsmanship.

Said boy didn't look nervous in the least. Instead, he had a glint in his eyes, one that promised pain on the other genin on Kabuto's team.

Once both were in the arena, Hayate raised his hand and yelled, "BEGIN!"

With no Curse Seal hindering him, Sasuke was stronger than he was in the previous timeline's Preliminaries.

It was a battle of nerves at first, with no one making the first. However, Akado attacked first, unaware that Sasuke had his Sharingan out.

Sasuke was behind Akado in a second, intending to hit the boy's spinal nerve which would knock him out and/or paralyze him for a short amount of time. What the Uchiha didn't know was that the other genin used a special jutsu: The Chakra Absorption Jutsu.

When Sasuke was about to snap his arm out, Akado turned and placed a hand on Sasuke's leg, sucking his chakra out.

A collective wince was heard when Sasuke dropped to the ground from midair, desperately trying to keep his chakra levels to a decent amount.

Kneeling, Sasuke looked around, seeing what could help him out here. He would not lose to this pathetic boy. He COULD NOT lose to this pathetic boy. This kid's attacks were only lethal if he came in direct contact with his arms. So he would have to immobilize them.

Moving at speeds faster than many could see and mindful of his slightly depleted chakra levels, Sasuke once again moved away from the boy, this time running around him, creating a circle around the genin. He looked like a blur, but his Sharingan was analyzing every move the boy made.

When Akado looked slightly dizzy, Sasuke took the opportunity to strike. All it took was one well placed kick to the head, and his opponent was on the ground.

"Winner, Uchiha Sasuke." Hayate announced in a rather tired voice.

The Uchiha came back to where his team was, astutely ignoring Sakura's gushing. He looked slightly smug, if not a tiny bit tired.

"Good job." Naruto said to him, being as civil as possible.

"Hn." Was the boy's response. And people wonder why Naruto doesn't want to spend the effort to save him...

"Nice Sasuke! You're through to the Finals." Kakashi told his student. The boy just grunted, but had a slightly pleased look on his face and went to ignoring the girl trying to get his attention.

"Next match: _Abumi Zaku vs. Aburame Shino!"_

* * *

Shino was talented, Naruto had to admit as his comrade came back victorious to a loud slap on the back from Kiba and a polite _Good job Shino-kun_ from Hinata. He had used his bugs to shut the one-armed genin up and block the implanted tubes in his arm. It was a tactic worthy from a Nara. The Aburame Clan was often judged for their...creepiness for lack of a better word, but Naruto knew that underneath that stoic exterior, there lay a warrior, a brave warrior who had laid down his life whilst protecting his Sensei's child.

Kankuro's match against Misumi Tsurgi played out as it did last time. The puppet wielder used Crow, his prized puppet, to crush the other boy's bones, thus rendering him incapable of fighting.

The fourth match was...

Ino vs. Sakura.

Enough said.

No, but really. The match ended in a draw just as it had last time. However, when Sakura cut her hair off, Naruto was reminded of the future Sakura. It was the glint in her eyes, the _don't mess with me _look that Naruto had admired about her when he was over his crush. The Sakura of the future was someone who would be respected, someone who could take the mantle of the new Slug Sennin, and carry it with honor.

There were more matches, with Mizu and Suna versing each other. Luckily, nearly all the matches in a draw therefore they were irrelevant.

"Next match: _Tenten vs. Temari!"_

A couple feet away from him, Naruto smirked as he saw both Lee and Shikamaru watching the match intently. Lee was simply supporting his teammate, while Shikamaru simply wanted to watch his wife without her knowing...

When Tenten lost rather quickly, Shikamaru had a smirk of triumph on his face before he turned to Lee and apologized. Lee, being the kindhearted soul that he was just waved off the apology and whispered something into Shikamaru's ear and gave Naruto a thumbs up. The Nara was blushing ever so slightly, which made Naruto very curious as to what Lee had just said.

"Next Match: _Tsuchi Kin vs. Nara Shikamaru!"_

As soon as the match was announced, Naruto went over to Lee's side to watch the match carefully. While he had no doubt that Shikamaru would win, it would be interesting to see his best friend working solo.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru sighed as he entered the fighting area. One look up told him that the Konoha Jonin and Hokage were watching him very closely. "Great. Just great."

"So we meet again, _Nara._" Kin snarled, brandishing her senbon in front of her.

"Yeah yeah." Shikamaru muttered before promptly sitting down much to the ire of his opponent, the surprise of all the others, and the sheer amusement of his best friends.

"What is that baka doing?" Ino asked, outraged at her teammate's actions.

"He's thinking." Naruto said from her left. "See how he put his index and middle finger on the bridge of his nose. That _baka_, is formulating a plan. You should know this Ino, you've known each other for all of your lives. Shikamaru is the most brilliant mind in our generation of course despite his exterior."

The blonde girl was rather taken aback by Naruto's comment, but at second glance, it seemed that he was right.

"Fight me you idiot!" Kin roared, sending a senbon Shikamaru's way. His eyes snapped open, and immediately, the senbon stopped halfway towards him. But in that senbon's shadow, there lay another, and Shikamaru was forced to drop his Clan's technique in order to dodge the needle.

"That's better." The girl snarled, coming at Shikamaru again.

"He's being lazy." Lee snorted, pointing out the way that Shikamaru was dodging Kin's attacks at the last second possible.

"He's being _troublesome_." Naruto corrected, sighing when Shikamaru gave both of them a smirk in midair.

_She's getting frustrated._ Shikamaru thought when Kin started sending out more and more weapons at him, ones that had a much larger shadow than a small senbon. _Perfect._

"What's wrong shadow boy?" Kin taunted. "Getting tired?" She was right above him, aiming to bash his head in. And that was right where Shikamaru wanted her.

"Nope. I'm just lazy." Shikamaru responded, affirming Lee's observation. _"Kage Mane Jutsu*."_ Shikamaru's shadow extended in midair, bouncing off the walls, and trapped Kin right where she was.

With a grunt, Shikamaru brought her to the ground, making sure that his jutsu had remained in place. Bringing a shuriken out of his pack, thus making Kin do the same as well, he threw it at her, dropping the jutsu just as the projectile hurtled towards him, allowing him to dodge.

Kin was not so lucky, and was conked in the side of the head by the shuriken causing her to fall unconscious to the ground.

Shikamaru took one look at her and pawed the ground with his sandal before sighing and walking out of the arena before even hearing the results.

"Winner, Nara Shikamaru." Hayate announced unnecessarily, inwardly laughing at the Nara boy's wit, tactical skill, and sheer, as he called it, _laziness._

* * *

"I can't believe that under that exterior, there lies a genius." Tenten muttered as Shikamaru came back to stand with the others. There wasn't even a scratch on him.

"You sure took your time." Naruto cuffed the Nara on the back. The others looked at them in confusion.

"Shikmaru-kun could have ended the match at the start with a well timed lightning jutsu, but he was just being..." Lee was cut off by a glare thrown his way by Shikamaru.

"I can't believe you had the _balls_ to sit down!" Kiba rumbled with laughter. "I thought that you were gone after that little stunt." The Inuzuka puffed his chest out. "I'll do much better than you did, Nara!"

"Next match: _Inuzuka Kiba vs. Uzumaki Naruto!"_

Kiba slapped his knee. "See, I'll prove it you right now!"

The Konoha Jonins in the room however, were sure that Kiba was going to be the loser.

Meanwhile, a certain Mizu Jonin's eyes widened at the last name of one of the competitors. Ao was an accomplished shinobi who was feared world wide, but he was no match for Mei-sama's demands that he become a Jonin instructor. Grudgingly, _very_ grudgingly, the man who had bested a Hyuuga and survived multiple confrontations with Uchiha Shisui had taken on a team of three brats. He was left with all three of them, though he had thoroughly hoped for none of them so that he could go home. None of his students had won though. However, he was sure that Mei-sama would come to Konoha anyway to show her loyalty, as well as see a possible family member.

As he watched the blond boy bearing the Uzumaki name walk to the arena, he tried to connect him to the legendary clan that his leader belonged to. The Uzumaki had dispersed through the five nations after Uzu no Kuni had been destroyed. Many Kiri and Ame ninja were members of that clan. He himself was related to them through his grandmother.

Could this..._orange_ wearing genin possibly be related to them? But why was he blond? Unless...Ao's one eye widened as he took in the similarities between this boy and another famous blond that this village had produced. It was possible, almost entirely too possible. That would mean though, that this boy's mother...

_Kushina!_

Ao tried to stop his racing heart. Of course. Kushina had been the _Princess of Whirlpool_, direct cousin to Senju Tsunade through Tsunade's grandmother, and Kushina's great-aunt: Uzumaki Mito. She and her family were given asylum by the Sandaime because of their relation to the Shodai Hokage. If this boy was her son..._his_ son, then this match would be reported back to Mei-sama.

This boy...he was the Prince of Whirlpool...and one half of the remaining Senjus...

_Konoha you sneaky bastards...keeping a gem like him hidden in plain sight._

* * *

After saying a soft _thank you_ to Hinata's equally soft _good luck, Naruto-kun_, he meandered his way down, ignoring Kiba's shouts for him to move quicker. In truth, Naruto wanted to end this as quickly as possible because Gaara was getting rather careless with his sand. He could see the bloodlust in his future friend's eyes. If this match didn't end quickly, then Lee was going to be in big trouble, assuming of course, that Lee would be fighting Gaara.

"Ready, dog-boy?" Naruto called out lazily, spinning a kunai in one hand. The Inuzuka Clan was hot-headed, impulsive, and reckless. He would use those psychological tactics to bring Kiba down...without farting on him.

"Are you?" Kiba challenged while Akamaru yipped at his side.

Naruto resisted the urge to yawn and decided to stretch instead, looking very much like Shikamaru as he did. The manic twinkle in his eye though, resembled Lee to the nth degree. He crooked one finger at Kiba saying, "Bring it."

As expected, Kiba attacked head on, going for the brutish approach rather than a more subtle attack. Naruto easily sidestepped the genin, swerving his foot at the right time so that Kiba tripped and fell face first onto the hard ground.

Snickers were heard all around the stadium as Kiba picked himself up, growling at Naruto who was looking at the boy calmly.

"Akamaru! Let's show this dead-last what we can do!" The small dog barked in agreement and took his normal stance on top of Kiba's head.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. He knew what was coming next and prepared himself for it.

"_Giju Ninpo: Juujin Bunshin!*"_ Akamaru transformed into another Kiba, making it impossible for a normal person to distinguish between the two. Unfortunately for Kiba, Naruto was _not _normal.

This transformation could be broken when the animal was identified and incapacitated. As one of the Kibas came at him, Naruto took a chance to smell him. Nope, that was definitely a human.

So that meant that the one coming at him from his right was Akamaru. He reached into his pack and pulled out a seal. Naruto had no wish to exert any energy whatsoever, but he did want to show the Hokage and the other Jonins his skills. Sealing would be the way to do so. This particular seal was meant to trap small animals in a cage, and was used primarily for hunting.

He positioned the seal in a place where he knew Akamaru would attack him: his arm. Naruto had purposely made himself vulnerable there.

True to his plan, Akamaru grabbed him on his right arm. Naruto smirked, and put one hand in a ram seal shouting "_Fujin!"_

Kiba, the real one, stopped in his tracks when the supposed dead last was engulfed in a puff of smoke, revealing his precious dog in a cage with Naruto grinning stupidly at him.

"Give up, Kiba." Naruto drawled, putting the cage on the ground. "Akamaru is trapped, your jutsu has been canceled."

The Inuzuka bared his fangs at Naruto, shaking his head violently. "Let Akamaru go!"

Up in the stands, Kurenai palmed her face. Naruto had barely lifted a finger, and he already had his opponent cornered in less than five minutes.

"Come and get him." Naruto smiled politely, walking to the side whilst discretely creating a shadow clone.

Kiba charged at the cage, intending to get his precious companion out of that iron prison. What he didn't see was Naruto placing his hands in a monkey seal, which released a second seal that was on the bottom of the cage. The second Kiba touched it, three hundred volts of electricity coursed through the poor boy's body, throwing him across the floor.

One of Naruto's shadow clones placed a foot on Kiba's throat. "Do you yield?"

"Y...yes!" Kiba choked out, struggling to get up. "Please, is Akamaru okay?"

Hayate came over, hearing that the Inuzuka had yielded. Uzumaki's clone just smiled at him and lifted the pressure off of the boy's throat.

The real Naruto helped his comrade to his feet and gave the pup to him. "He's fine." Naruto petted the white dog's head. "See. I would never hurt your companion."

Kiba looked at Naruto who didn't even have dirt on him, with something akin to respect. Not many understood the relationship between the Inuzuka's ninken and the clan members. The dogs were not pets, they were, as Naruto had said, their companions. He held out his hand, excepting his swift defeat. He had lost, but he had lost to someone who he had underestimated grossly. It was his own fault.

Naruto took the other boy's hand and shook it, slightly surprised at the gesture. Akamaru also nipped Naruto's fingers gently, congratulating him in a way.

"Winner, Uzumaki Naruto!" Hayate announced, smirking at the camaraderie shown.

"Next time Naruto, I won't underestimate you." Kiba promised, bumping fists with the blond.

"And I'll kick it up a notch." Naruto replied, taking his place besides Shikamaru again.

"What?" Shikamaru nudged the blond in the ribs. "No flashy jutsus? No declaring that you would beat Kiba and become Hokage?"

"Nah." Naruto snorted. "I figured I would keep it simple this time."

"That was very boring, Naruto-kun." Lee admitted with a teasing grin. "I felt like yawning."

"Oh shut up." He scowled at the pressure in his stomach. Turning, he saw that Gaara was staring at him with a positively lethal expression. "I have a bad feeling that we're going to have to save the pomp and show for a bit later."

* * *

Ao was even more convinced that the blond was _their_ son. The sealing that he had used, while simple, was something that not many decided to use. Sealing was part of the Uzumaki legacy. Yes, it seemed as though Mei-sama had found a wayward cousin in Konoha...and so had he.

A blond Uzumaki who was the son of the Yellow Flash and The Princess of Whirlpool a.k.a. the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero.

The boy would certainly be full of surprises.

* * *

"Well that was...anticlimactic." Kurenai looked at Naruto, and how he was joking around with both Kiba and Kakashi. "I expected something more from both of them."

"Naruto-kun's goal was to trap Akamaru because he knew that the Inuzuka value their ninken above everything else." Gai said slowly. "It was a well executed strategy, one that was quick, bloodless, and effective."

"Next match! _Hyuuga Hinata vs. Hyuuga Neji!"_

Both Kurenai and Gai looked startled. They knew about the hate that Neji had for the main branch.

Indeed, Hinata looked pale, but determined.

"Kurenai-san." Gai started solemnly. "I will not let anything bad happen to Hinata-san. You have my word."

The red eyed woman nodded, still scared about what may happen to her favorite student.

* * *

Hinata was shaking. Her cousin was looking at her as if she was the scum below his feet._I can do this. Just breathe. Be calm. He's family. He won't hurt me._ Though she was telling herself this, she didn't believe a word of it. She knew what her Clan thought of her, how she was weak, how if she didn't become stronger, then Hanabi would become Clan Head. All she wanted was her father's approval, her family's love.

"Hinata."

The Hyuuga _eeped, _and turned around, staring right into the crystal clear eyes of her long time crush.

Naruto could see how scared the girl was, and he wanted to help her, instill some confidence into her just as he had done last time.

"Hinata-chan." Naruto said again, adding his customary suffix to her name, having a small amount of pride in seeing her blush. "Ganbatte! I know that you will give it your all. Even if your cousin proves to be too much, we all," He jerked his thumb to point at Shikamaru and Lee who waved at the girl, "Will all support you."

She blushed even more deeply, nodding at Naruto's statement. It had worked though. She felt confident even though she knew that she was outmatched by Neji.

Once Hinata was on the floor, Kakashi came up behind his student and ruffled his hair. "A Hyuuga eh, Naruto?" Kakashi smirked slyly. "Nice."

The poor boy just ignored his sensei, but his sensei could not ignore the tinge of red on the _poor boy's_ cheeks.

_Your Godfather will be proud kiddo_.

* * *

Neji regarded the girl, his _blood_, this pathetic child. While he held some respect for Uzumaki, he couldn't stand Hinata. She was weak, timid, not worthy of the Main Branch. The time had come to teach her a lesson, to show her who is the true Hyuuga.

Even when the proctor told them to begin, neither moved, each waiting for the other to attack first. Hinata had her hands in the classic Gentle Fist opening stance, but Neji decided to keep his hands at his side, itching to move straight to the _Kaiten_.

The older boy sneered. "What will your father think, Hinata-_sama_, when he finds out that his eldest daughter, heir to the Clan, lost to a _branch member_?"

Hinata trembled, knowing that her father was going to be beyond furious, even if she did lose to the genius of the Hyuuga Clan, the prodigy, his nephew. However, she wouldn't rise to the bait, not when Naruto-kun and her team was watching her. She would be strong.

"En...Enough talking, N...Neji nii-san. Let us fig...fight."

That just made Neji scoff in disdain. "How disgraceful that a future Clan Head _stutters_. Hanabi is more suited for the position then you ever will be."

That struck Hinata hard. She knew what her Clan thought of her, they believed she was a failure. But Hanabi? Hanabi was truly gifted.

"What? Don't want to talk? Fine! Let me show you just how weak you are!"

"_Byakugan!"_ Two simultaneous cries were heard.

It was Hinata who moved first though, attacking Neji from his right side, blue chakra glowing from her hands. Neji was faster, and able to block Hinata's attack.

"What are they doing?" Sakura asked, watching in awe as her shy classmate unleashed strike after strike on her cousin who was retaliating just as fast.

"It's called the _Juuken_ or Gentle Fist." Kakashi spoke from behind them. "It's a Hyuuga taijutsu that is used in conjunction with their bloodline which targets the _tenketsus,_ the chakra points of a person. Anyone can learn the Gentle Fist, but it's at its most effective with the Byakugan because they can see the tenketsu points."_  
_

"It's a _dojutsu," _Kiba spoke, wincing as one of Neji's blows landed on Hinata, propelling her backwards. "More lethal than the Sharingan." He shot an arrogant smirk at the Uchiha who bristled.

Hinata and Neji whirled around each other, dancing, parrying, thrusting. If Neji didn't have the intent to kill her, Naruto could say that this was a fantastic display of skill. However the scowl on the boy's face, his stance, and how he was aiming at the fatal tenketsu points, it all showed that Neji wanted nothing more than to kill her.

Hinata was losing chakra, and she knew it. She too had gotten some good hits in, but Neji outclassed her. He had hit a tenketsu point by the femoral artery in her leg, and a couple others by her thorasic and superior vena cava. All of these were deadly hits. All it would take was one or two more strategically placed hits from Neji to her arms by her lymph nodes in the arm pits, or to her legs, and she was done.

She panted for breath, narrowly dodging another blow.

"What's wrong, Hinata-sama?" Neji taunted. "Does it hurt?" He spit on the ground, pearly white eyes burning with fury. "How does it feel, to be nothing by a failure?"

Hinata knew that he was doing this to throw her off, but she also knew that the vitriol, the pure _loathing_ in his voice was not faked at all. She opted to remain silent, knowing that anything she said would set Neji off even more.

Neji saw an opening to finalize this match. He had hit her on her right side, meaning that her internal balance was thrown off track. She had left herself weak. Who was he not to take an opportunity to deliver the fatal blow when it was _her_ who was giving it to him on a platter.

Moving at speeds that a normal genin couldn't see, he hit the two tenketsus on her arm that were on the same horizontal axis. Neji watched in utter pleasure as his cousin's eyes widened, first in surprise, then pain, and finally...the emotion that he had wanted to see the most..._fear._

"Damn it!" Shikamaru cursed, as he and the others could only watch as Hinata collapsed to the ground, no longer able to use the Gentle Fist.

"Hinata." Kurenai gasped softly while Shino and Kiba were rigid as boards.

Gai watched his student with narrowed eyes. He had known how much hatred that Neji held for the Main Branch, but this...was inexcusable.

Naruto gripped the railing so hard, that it dented slightly. He hated...he _despised_ this Neji. The Neji who believed that he could not write his own faith, the Neji who hated himself more than anything, even his Uncle, the Neji who believed that he had to be powerful in order to show the Main Branch what he was worth.

_Stand Hinata. Please, stand. Even if it's just for a second. Show him that you are not as weak as he thinks._

It hurt, more than she imagined. Blood trickled down the sides of her mouth, dribbling into her ever-present coat. But she had to get up! She had to! So what if she was down? So what? Neji wasn't attacking her. He thought she was gone, but she had to tell him, to show him, that she was his _ cousin_, and that she _ loved_ him, no matter what.

Staggering on weak, seemingly non existent muscles, Hinata finally stood before doubling over in pain.

"What's this?" Neji asked condescendingly. "You're standing? What use is it? One more blow from me, and I can _kill_ you."

Something in the boy's tone made the girl stand a bit straighter, even though all she wanted to do was collapse.

"Then do it." Hinata's quiet voice echoed through the silent stadium. Her stutter had gone for the moment. "Show everyone, show _everyone_ what you can do. Show them, Neji-nii." She stared her cousin in the eye, daring him to attack, to come at her, to _kill_ her.

For a precious moment, she thought that he wouldn't, but she was sorely mistaken when he charged. Closing her eyes, she resigned herself to her fate. It didn't matter anymore.

The fatal delivery never came though. When she opened her eyes, she saw not one, not two, but_ four_ people holding Neji back. First was the proctor who had Neji's hands behind his back. Next was her cousin's teammate, the one in green, who was standing over her protectively. The other was Gai-sensei who, like his student, was in front of her. The last person, was not Naruto, but Shikamaru, who had Neji trapped within his shadow, meaning that he couldn't move even if he wanted to.

"More favoritism for the Main Branch I see." Neji scoffed despite being paralyzed.

"Shut up kid." Hayate growled. "The match is over. You won. We won't allow you to kill when it was clear who the winner was."

It was then that Hinata collapsed, the last of her strength gone, and the medics immediately rushing in.

When Neji was coming back to the others, they gave him a wide berth, no one, not even Tenten offering him congratulations.

"Let me ask you something, Hyuuga." Naruto said so quietly, that it sounded deadly. "All the times that you claimed you hate Hinata-chan, how many times did she actually use the seal on you?"

It wasn't surprising that he didn't get a response.

* * *

"Chouji..." Asuma sighed.

"Sorry sensei, but after seeing what that boy could do in the forest, I won't fight him." Chouji crossed his arms defiantly, knowing he was outclassed by Dosu.

The bearded Jonin sighed again, but nodded. "Alright. Hayate, my student forfeits!"

"Very well. The winner is Kinuta Dosu by reason of forfeit." He coughed again, and checked his roster. "Last match: Rock Lee vs. Gaara of the Sand."

"YOSH!" Lee roared, pumping his fist. "I AM BURSTING WITH ENERGY FOR THIS MATCH!"

"Lee..." Shikamaru massaged his abused eardrums. "I'm standing right next to you..."

"Sorry."

"Lee." It was Naruto who spoke this time. The look in the blond's eye made both Lee and Shikamaru turn serious. "Look at Gaara."

The boy turned to the floor where Gaara already was. Hayate was as far away as possible from him because of the sand that he was exuding.

"He...or rather Shukaku is itching to kill you. If..._when_ things become...sandy, forfeit, and let me do the rest. Kurama is jumping around in my gut, anxious to see what his youngest brother is doing."

"Hai." Lee responded softly. Naruto was right, Gaara did want to kill him, and he wouldn't allow things to turn out like they did last time with his arms and legs crushed.

"LEE MY YOUTHFUL STUDENT!" Gai bounded over to him, smiling from ear to ear. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT NARUTO-KUN JUST SAID, BUT LISTEN TO HIM AND DO YOUR BEST!"

The tears that came to Lee's eyes were exactly like the ones before Gai and Lee had one of their...crashing waves under a sunset moment. Naruto had no wish to see that scene right now, so he nudged Lee not so discretely with his foot until Lee _finally_ decided to _cartwheel_his way down to the arena.

"I swear to Kami." Shikamaru mumbled. "I..." He couldn't continue, not knowing what he wanted to say.

Gaara observed this..._monstrosity_ that his mother wanted to kill so much. He was so...green. That wouldn't do. Red was the only color that he wanted to see. He wanted to see it blossom from the wounds that he would inflict, and become one beautiful flower, the most rich and crimson of colors.

_Kill him, Gaara, kill him for your mother._ Shukaku whispered seductively in his mind.

"Yes mother." Gaara replied back monotonously.

Lee jumped out of the way as a tendril of rock solid sand came hurtling at him, followed by another...and another...and another. Gaara was anxious to get this over with as quickly as possible. Lee wouldn't let that happen though, he would just keep dodging.

And so the sand came, each blow more deadly than the last, each blow intending to kill. Lee winced when he saw the gouges that the sand had made in the steel arena. If he had been there...

Gaara's sand was quick, but Lee was faster, and had the advantage of knowing what Gaara's weak points were. Before the exams had started, he, Shikamaru, and Naruto had discussed how they would handle Gaara. All had agreed that during the one month break until the Finals, they would tell Baki-san, and the three siblings what was really going on, and hopefully that would convince them to side with Konoha. Of course, Naruto would be the one who would have to make Gaara come over to their side, seeing as they were Jinchuuriki_ Kyodai*. _This time, Naruto had promised that it wouldn't take a battle to make the red head see the proverbial light.

Back in the stand, Temari and Kankuro watched the match impassively. Though this kid, the kid in green was _weird_, he was good. No jutsus, no flashy moves, just simple dodging. He was making their brother highly irritated. And if Gaara became irritated...

Temari shivered slightly, remembering the blood curdling screams from that one night, that night when Gaara had killed their Uncle who was sent to assassinate him on the Yondaime...their _father's_ orders. That was the day that Gaara had become the monster he was...the day that any shred of humanity that he had held on to, vanished. That was the day he had become a killing machine, a feared and hated entity, a product of hate and anger.

By now, Gaara's sand was coming out in small bullets, making it much faster with less impact force, but it was making it much harder for Lee to dodge them.

_I don't think he did this last time. _He thought mororsely, and kept on making Gaara spin in circles. Truth be told, this was going to infuriate the boy even more, and Gaara could end up killing everyone. He had to forfeit, Lee knew that, but he didn't know when.

"So fast." Sakura whispered in awe, watching the green blur move from one end to the other in jaw-dropping speeds.

" Shouldn't he drop the weights?" Shikamaru asked Naruto who palmed his face at forgetting this fact. The blond, like his counterparts, knew that Gaara was going to lose control soon. When this happened, it was going to be a blessing in disguise because the Suna trio would be with them sooner than they had planned. Of course, this was assuming that Naruto could tame his fellow jailer.

He jumped on top of the railing, demonstrating a remarkable amount of chakra control as he stuck to the surface and shouted, "OI LEE! DROP THE WEIGHTS!"

While the others sans Gai and Shikamaru seemed surprised, Lee paused for a split second, removing the weights on his arms and legs.

"Pft." Kiba scoffed. "So what if he drops the wei-"

_CRASH_.

Solid craters formed in the steel below, the weights resting on the bottom of them.

Gai smiled brightly at the glances he was getting. "YOSH MY YOUTHFUL STUDENT! NOW YOU MAY MOVE AT _TRIPLE _SPEED!"

"HAI GAI-SENSEI!" Lee called back, smiling just as brightly at his precious sensei. "Okay, Gaara-san, now we can _fight_." With that, Lee vanished, and reappeared behind Gaara, kicking him swiftly in the middle of the back, sending Gaara flying ten feet._  
_

"Amazing." Kankuro muttered at what he had just seen. "But Gaara..."

"Yeah." Temari agreed, "He's going to kill that poor boy."

* * *

Gaara picked himself up, aching everywhere. Why? Why hadn't Mother cushioned him from that fall? Did she not love him? Why?"

_You didn't kill him, Gaara-kun. Why didn't you kill him? Mother needs his blood. Kill him NOW!_

Kill him? Oh yes. He needed to kill him. He needed to drain that boy's body of all the blood in the world so that Mother would be pleased with him.

The blur appeared before him once again, this time aiming a kick at his head.

It connected, with no sand to stop it, but Gaara kept on standing. He didn't go down. Instead, he felt the spot where the kid had kicked him.

Strange. It was wet.

When he brought his fingers in front of his face, a sadistic and sinister smile lit his face. They were _red_. His fingers were coated in the substance. _His_ blood. _Mother's_ blood.

Red.

Red.

Not the right shade.

Not the _real_ shade.

He needed to see _that_ red.

And then, all Gaara could see was red...

* * *

"Well damn." Lee deadpanned when the sand on the ground started to gather and move back to Gaara. It created a vortex around him, and everyone could hear the downright hysterical laughter coming from within it. He looked to his two best friends. Both had gone pale, knowing what was happening inside the little cocoon that Gaara had created for himself.

"Proctor-san." Lee addressed Hayate in a low tone. "I urge that you leave this stadium immediately."

The sickly jonin looked at him in surprise.

"Proctor-san." The boy's voice had taken on a hard edge to it. "Look at him." Lee pointed at Gaara, and Hayate slowly had an impending sense of doom as the boy was...he had no words to describe what was going on.

"Needless to say, I forfeit." Lee continued as if Gaara _wasn't_ about to transform at least partially. "However, we have to get out of here, otherwise he _will_ kill us."

It was then that Gaara suddenly sprouted a tail.

Needing no further encouragement, both Hayate and Lee jumped to the stands, landing gracefully.

"What's going on?" Sakura asked fearfully, watching the red head with horror. His face had been warped with sand, and half of it was beginning to start looking like an animal's.

"Hayate-kun." The Hokage stepped into view, concern on his face.

"Hokage-sama. This genin has forfeited." He gestured to Lee. "However, I fear for our safety."

**Nar...Sto...Hurry...**

Naruto placed a hand over his stomach, glad that Kurama was finally waking. He couldn't hear him too well, and estimated that in a day or so, the fox would be fully awake. It made sense. They had arrived almost two months ago, and that's how long he had predicted it would take for Kurama to regain his chakra. It seemed as though being in the same room as one of his siblings had jumpstarted his process of waking up.

_I know Kurama. I know_.

"Naruto." Lee came into his vision and nodded slightly. The blond returned the nod. It was time.

Reaching into his sack, Naruto pulled out a seal, a barrier seal to be exact. It was keyed in so that he, Shikamaru, and Lee could penetrate the barrier if need be. It had been created just for this purpose. It had taken days, but this seal was strong enough to withstand Gaara's sand. With the combined chakra inputs of the trio, it was fortified beyond belief.

Taking a deep breath and holding the seal between his index and middle fingers, Naruto closed his eyes. "ACTIVATE!"

He felt the invisible wall erect itself around the entire stadium. He, Lee, and Shikamaru went through it, landing on the other side, closer to Gaara while everyone looked at them as if they were crazy.

"Naruto." Kakashi walked towards his student, only to crash into something that felt very solid. "What the?"

"_Kekkai._*" Shikamaru murmured. "A barrier. Only us three can move in and out. You are safe for now."

Mutterings of _Impossible_ filled the stadium, and many tried to move through the seal, but found that what the Nara said was true. They were trapped behind an invisible wall.

Sarutobi regarded the three with pride as well as disbelief. "Naruto, did you create this?"

The blond looked from Gaara to the Hokage before nodding curtly. "One of my finest."

"Get back here!" Kurenai shouted in concern. "You'll be killed!"

To her surprise, Naruto only laughed. "Killed? By _Gaara_? I don't think so?"

"And what makes you so sure?" Temari challenged her fellow blond. "He's lost control! No one can bring him back!"

When he looked at her, she was surprised by the sheer determination and understanding she saw.

"No one can bring him back?" The boy's words repeated Temari's. "Don't be stupid. Of course we can. And to answer your first question," Naruto smirked at the girl, holding his fist over his heart. "A younger sibling will never attack his eldest on purpose."

* * *

"Three point offensive. I've got your sixes!" Naruto barked, creating fifteen shadow clones.

"Hai!" Two cries were heard.

Lee and Shikamaru took off from opposite sides, with three of Naruto's clones trailing them. Both threw a barrage of kunai at the now completely psychotic Gaara whose sand brushed the weapons off like they were flies.

However, the duo were only distractions. The real attack would come from Naruto who would come at Gaara from the back.

Explosive seal in hand, Naruto charged at Gaara, targeting his tail. Tendrils of sand were shooting out at him, causing him to shift in midair. Diving down, he just managed to place the seal on Gaara before all three of them jumped back.

_Boom!_

The entire stadium was rocked by an explosion which blanketed the arena with smoke and dust. No one knew what was going on, and no one dared say a word.

Amidst the confusion, Gaara howled. Not in pain, but in frustration. They had targeted the weakest part of his body, his tail. Though he was not hurt, his tail would take longer to reform. He still had his _absolute defense, _but it was hampered.

"NO!" He screamed, clutching his face. "NO!"

Who did these _humans_ think they were that they could attack him and get away with it?

Behind the barrier, near the Mizu nin, the trio watched as the explosion cleared, leaving Gaara with sand pouring out of his rear side.

"He's about to lose it." Lee muttered. "Big time." The boy/man looked to Naruto. "You have the seal?"

Naruto patted his pack. "A one pronged seal over a three pronged."

"Odd over odd. Effective, and quite difficult to make. An opening seal, if I'm not mistaken, that will allow the person using it to modify an existing seal, the one that you drew being the stencil.." A voice from behind them mused.

They turned to see a familiar looking Mizu nin scratching his chin. It was Ao-san, aid to the Mizukage...well, he would be very soon. They all shook off images of the man's dead body, his throat slashed, his eyes, once so vibrant, dulled by the presence of death.

"Uzumaki, was it?" The blue haired nin asked.

Naruto nodded.

"Your Clan was certainly gifted in seals, and it appears though as if you're a budding Fujinjutsu master."

The Rokudaime Hokage looked surprised, as did the others around him. Ao-san knew of the Uzumaki Clan? Interesting... This warranted a further looking into, but not right now.

"Thanks..."

"Naruto!" Shikamaru grunted in frustration. "Look at Gaara's eyes!"

They all saw how teal had turned to gold. The transformation was nearing completion. If Naruto didn't get that seal on him soon, Gaara was about to turn into the Shukaku.

Gaara turned, and once again, his eyes locked onto Naruto's.

**Kick his...don't let him...protect...no...sleep...**

Naruto understood the gist of what the fox was saying. He couldn't let Gaara fall asleep, or else everything was done for.

* * *

In seconds, the three of them had jumped back to where the Konoha nin and Hokage were standing, as this was the best place they could attack from. The trio waved off any questions from the others, (and one jealous and rage filled glance from Sasuke), to concentrate.

"Shika, 35 percent. Lee, patrol, make sure no sand gets through." Naruto ordered. Taking out the seal that would put the Shukaku to rest, and fortify the already existing seal, Naruto cut his palm, and smeared his own blood precisely over the center of the seal. It glowed a beautiful golden color, and smoked at the edges.

"What did you do?" Asuma inquired.

"Infused the seal with my blood." He ignored the gasps. "

"Why?" Sarutobi asked, not knowing how and when Naruto had become so knowledgeable. He understood how Naruto had picked up the basic seals, however this looked like a complicated seal that only Kushina, Jiraiya, or Minato, or any Master could produce. This meant that Naruto was near the level of a Master, and that was frightening.

Naruto looked up, flexing his now healed palm. "This seal will push Shukaku back, or rather, it will open the existing seal so that I can work on it using this design. Blood Sealing is dangerous, but highly effective. The chances of failing are virtually none, assuming of course, that I place the seal directly over his stomach. With my blood over top the seal that I created, I ensure that Gaara won't be harmed by the Ichibi any longer, and that he will have more control over the beast."

"Wait!" Temari called as they made to leave, astutely ignoring the sand that hit the barrier, but didn't come through.

"What?"

The girl looked down at her toes, as if searching for the proper wording for what she wanted to say. "What did you mean? When you said that Gaara wouldn't hurt his eldest sibling on purpose?"

Naruto looked at the sand siblings impassively. "I was referring to myself, as well as you. Deep down, Gaara knows that you care for him, as do I, but he doesn't know how to accept those feelings. As for me, well, let's say that your brother regards me with fear, and respect."

"But you aren't our sibling, and you are younger than us..." Kankuro trailed off, confusion covering his painted face.

That caused Naruto to chuckle. "True, but I'm _Gaara's _eldest sibling. Not yours."

Seeing the still perplexed expressions, Shikamaru decided to elaborate. "Let's put it this way. If Gaara is the first, then Naruto is the ninth, hence Naruto is the eldest out of _all_ of them." This was said so that no one save the five of them would be able to hear what was being discussed.

With that, all three moved into action once again.

Temari and Kankuro's eyes widened in surprise and shock. That meant...

* * *

Shikamaru took his position just behind the barrier and knelt down to place his hands in the customary rat seal. _"Kage Mane no Jutsu!"_ He shouted, abruptly changing from the rat to the snake seal to have a better grasp on the shadow as it covered nearly the entire surface of the arena. It was soon apparent that when Naruto had shouted 35 percent, he had meant 35 percent of Shikamaru's chakra.

The second his shadow made contact with Gaara, the jinchuuriki howled again, desperately trying to break free.

Shikamaru gritted his teeth. If the person who was trapped had a will to escape that was stronger than the caster's, then that person would be able to release the jutsu. However, Shikamaru knew that he _could not_ let Gaara through. Though he had much more chakra than he had had when he was a kid, he didn't have the reserves that Naruto had. The most he could hold this enormous shadow for, was five minutes. Naruto's seal that enhanced a person's chakra wouldn't work at all, not without him dropping the jutsu at least. And he couldn't risk that.

Lee had left his post on the perimeter of the arena, and had taken to distracting Gaara, flashing from one side to the other, dodging the sand that came his way, becoming the target of many projectiles that bounced harmlessly on the barrier. The beauty of Naruto's seal was that he didn't loose chakra whilst trying to maintain the giant wall.

Naruto was standing on top of his barrier, so to many, it looked like he was standing in midair. Looking down, it didn't look like Gaara was going to fall asleep anytime soon thanks to Lee who was making him dizzy.

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."_ He intoned, creating four clones. No words were needed. They knew what to do.

Once the clones were created, Lee went back through the wall and landed next to Shikamaru who was sweating profusely.

"Argh!" The Nara collapsed on both knees, causing his shadow to retract slightly, but did not let Gaara move freely.

"Shikamaru!" Various cries were heard from around him. Lee stood protectively behind him, not let anyone get any further.

"Naruto! I can't hold it for much longer! Do it!" He shouted. Even though he had used only thirty five percent of his chakra, he could feel Gaara's will, or rather, Shukaku's will overpowering him. No one man could hold a Bijuu in the Shadow Bind. Holding Shukaku was draining his reserves rapidly, causing him to exert more chakra than needed.

The blond nodded, and the clones moved through the barrier, each one grabbing an arm or leg, and pinning Gaara down. Because of Shikamaru's shadow, the sand couldn't touch the clones.

"Would you just STAY STILL!" Naruto roared, succeeding in surprising Gaara. What he didn't know, was that Shukaku had sensed some of Kurama's chakra, and was reacting to that.

"Naruto!" Lee cried, noticing that Shikamaru's shadow was receding. "Hurry up!"

"Not yet!" The Nara muttered, pushing more and more chakra into sustaining the shadow. There. He had bought Naruto at least a minute.

Seeing how tired Shikamaru was, Lee leaped down, and grabbed Gaara's half transformed face, holding it to the ground.

"Drop it!" Naruto commanded, referring to Shikamaru's shadow. "Now!"

Having no choice but to obey, Shikamaru let go, giving Gaara free reign to move around.

One by one, Naruto's clones popped away due to Gaara's sand.

"Lee, leave now."

"No." He wasn't going to leave his best friend here, alone.

"Lee! I said go!"

"And I said NO!"

Sighing in frustration, Naruto knew he couldn't change Lee's very stubborn mind.

Sand was closing in on them fast, and judging by Shukaku's voice, Gaara was almost completely transformed. However he needed to be sleeping for it to be final, which he wasn't."

Concentrating Wind chakra in his hand, Naruto ripped apart the robe that Gaara wore, exposing his stomach which held the seal of the Ichibi. He mentally made a note to himself to berate Chiyo-baa-sama harshly for making such an unstable seal. Gaara was bound to lose control, even if he didn't want to.

"You got him, Lee?"

"Affirmative."

"Well then let go, and take this to reinforce the barrier, because this is going to get messy." Naruto handed Lee a second barrier seal, which would activate when Lee gave the command.

Lee looked like he wanted to resist, but one look at Naruto showed that his Hokage wouldn't take no as an answer this time. Grudgingly taking the seal, Lee left his friend with Naruto, who had created approximately one hundred clones to keep Gaara pinned.

Just as Lee activated the second seal, Naruto yelled "_FUUIN!"_

For one agonizing moment, the entire arena was silent, wondering if whatever this blond kid had done worked or not. And many thought it hadn't because of the lack of anything happening.

But then...

A swirl of red and blue chakra engulfed the two Jinchuurki, blinding everyone in the stadium. Even though the kid had put barriers up, those behind them still felt the shockwaves of chakra bouncing off of the invisible walls. If that had touched them, then they would be toast.

Shouts of "Naruto!" and "Uzumaki!" were heard, while the Suna Siblings and Baki watched with wide eyes as this frankly insane kid attempted to re-seal a tailed beast, a feat that no twelve year-old should be able to accomplish.

But as the haze of chakra cleared, the impossible had happened.

Because in the center of the arena, Uzumaki Naruto emerged from the light, carrying a now unconscious Gaara on his shoulder, deep gashes covering his entire body. His customary orange jumpsuit was tattered, but the expression on his face was one of accomplishment.

With a single hand seal, both barriers came crashing down with an audible thud, and Naruto wearily laid Gaara down where his siblings were.

The stadium was completely silent.

Temari and Kankuro rushed to Gaara's side, but resisted touching him, afraid as to what might happen.

Naruto just snorted. "He's sleeping."

At their looks of panic, he cracked a wane smile. "Relax. I fixed his...problem. I modified the seal on his stomach, making him in control of the Ichibi, rather than the other way around. He won't hear from Shukaku unless he digs really, _really_, deep. Trust me." It was true. The previous seal hadn't looked nearly as intricate as this one.

For some reason, despite this kid's looks, the two of them really did trust him. Gaara had said in the forest that he didn't regard them as his siblings, yet this stranger, had openly called Gaara his youngest brother.

Naruto collapsed against the railing, panting harshly. He had just managed to complete the seal when Gaara's sand started lashing out at him. He couldn't dodge the attacks, so he had allowed them to cut him. By now, there was probably a small amount of blood pooling around him, but Kurama was already working on healing his brother's work.

A gentle palm lay on his bloodied shoulder, and he didn't even have to look up to know that it was the Sandaime's. Someone patted his head. Probably Kakashi...maybe even Genma...it didn't matter.

A sigh was heard from above him, a soft, reproachful sigh along with two thuds as Lee and Shikamaru plopped down besides him. All three had the same scowls and weariness present on their faces.

The knocked out boy twitched slightly, and started to snore loudly causing the trio to freeze before laughing hysterically.

"Ah," Lee sighed, wiping tears from his eyes, "Looks like Gaara-kun is catching up on twelve years worth of lost sleep."

"It's going to be a pain in the ass to wake him up." Shikamaru mumbled morosely, but his face still held traces of mirth as he looked at the future Kazekage/his future brother in-law.

When Naruto finally looked up, he saw the awed faces of all of the genin, including Sasuke and Neji, although it looked like those two were scrutinizing the trio more than anything. Probably judging their power or something like that... He also saw the shaking heads of the Jonin that were present.

"Seriously you three," Kakashi began, a hand on the bridge of his nose. "First the forest, and now this. You're trying to infuriate us, aren't you?"

Three sheepish grins were thrown his way.

Naruto stood shakily, with Shikamaru and Lee holding him up. Medics _once again_ rushed towards them, but Naruto's palm stopped them in their tracks.

"Just tell us when we need to be in your office, Hokage-sama." Naruto grumbled. "And we'll be there."

"In the meantime though," Shikamaru slung the still sleeping Gaara over his shoulder just like Naruto had. The blond grabbed both Temari and Kankuro, while Lee took hold of a reluctant Baki.

"We have to make sure that the seal is completely stable." Lee finished.

And before anyone could stop them, the seven of them were gone in a swirl of leaves.

The looks on everyone's faces were priceless.

"But he wasn't even healed yet..." One of the medics grumbled.

"Well you were right, Kurenai." Asuma chuckled dryly, watching the last leaf fall to the ground. "This was a day that we will never forget."

After all, it wasn't everyday that you watched the jailer of the Kyuubi seal the Ichibi into its host.

It wasn't everyday that you saw a seal as complex as the one that Naruto had created.

It wasn't everyday when you realized that three genin were stronger than the average chunin.

And it wasn't everyday that those three genin made their way into the Bingo Book.

But they didn't know that yet.

* * *

* _Kage Mane Jutsu:_ Shadow Possession technique

_* Giju Ninpo: Juujin Bunshin: _ Imitation Beast Ninja Art: Beast Human Clone

* _Kyodai: _Siblings

* _Kekkai:_ Barrier, Wall

_This is not a "Super-powered" Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru, story. They are more powerful than the others, and they know that hiding such power is nearly impossible, so they are going to show it, FLAUNT it, and be recognized for it much earlier on in their lives than in the previous timeline. Don't worry though, they are only human after all._


	8. Never try to out-Nara a Nara

**Eh, despite what you guys thought, I belived that the last chapter was not the best, but I'll go with the flow.**

**I don't know how this chapter turned out...**

**Some people asked me if I'm just going to let Sasuke go...**

**Well, the thing is, I do NOT like him, like at all, and I don't see how people are so forgiving when he comes back, especially Naruto. Don't get me started on Sakura...**

**Plus, since this is AU, Sasuke did some very bad things in the future, as you all know if you've read the story, he _killed_ Sakura. So to tell the truth, I don't know if I truly want to save him, but I don't know yet.**

**You'll find out anyway in two or three or four chapters...haven't written them yet.**

**And for the last time...there is no _overt_ romance, meaning that there will be no mushy gushy smut, or whatever. Pairings are there, but they won't be the focus. So Naruto and Hinata will not get it on, never...**

**Enough from me! Just enjoy the eighth installment of _A Wrinkle in Time..._**

* * *

The stadium had descended into a frenzy of madness after the trio's _show. _The Konoha Jonin were trying to get their students together, and keep them from looking at the blood that Naruto had left behind. There were talks from the other nations on how those three had actually been Jonins who were placed in the exam to keep anyone from dying, and sadly, some people were buying that story.

However, throughout all the chaos, one person was silent, just playing back what had happened.

That person, was none other than Orochimaru.

The encounter that he had had with the very same genins who everyone was talking about, left him to believe that those three were people of interest. But this...what had just happened, it had solidified his belief. Especially the blond. Uzumaki no, _Namikaze_ Naruto. The son of the man who had beat him to the position of the Yondaime, the pupil of his idiotic teammate.

A legend.

That boy could be his salvation, his legacy. And if Naruto joined him, then the other two would follow. The type of loyalty they held for each other insured that they would.

The Sennin was practically salivating at that thought. He needed Sasuke for his eyes, but he _wanted_ the other three for their skills. Such talent...Konoha didn't deserve them, but he did. Together, they could make Oto strong, make it the most powerful nation in the world.

However, the children were loyal to Konoha, to the Hokage, and swaying their loyalty was going to be difficult. Luckily though, he had a man on the inside, Kabuto. Perhaps Kabuto would befriend them, persuade them, and help them help him.

Yes, that was a start. Kabuto would approach them during this month, see what made them tick, and use that to lure them to his side.

Power was at his fingertips.

He just had to close those fingers and grasp it with all his might.

* * *

Naruto collapsed on the fields of Training Ground 12 where they had _shunshined_ to. His breath was coming out in labored pants even though most of his wounds were closing.

His eyes locked in on the clouds above him, breathing settling down slightly. For years, he had hated being still, because being still meant that those who wished you harm could find you. However now, he appreciated the ground beneath him, how it supported his weight, how it let him relax, how it would be there until he decided to move.

"Ruto?" Lee's voice caused him to blink and attempt to sit, but found that the pain searing through his body rendered him quite weak.

Two strong, and separate hands guided him to an upright position, letting him rest on their support.

"You did good, Naruto." Shikamaru said softly, fingering the places on his ruined jacket where Gaara's sand had ripped through.

"Thanks, guys." His voice sounded gravely and rough. The boy felt wearier than he should.

The Nara unsealed a spare black shirt that he had, coaxing Naruto to remove his jacket, and pulled it over his head.

"You need a medic." Lee commented lightly, taking in the numerous wounds all over Naruto's body. His body language was anything but light though.

"Later." Naruto grunted. With some difficulty, he raised himself on his feet, teetering dangerously. But once again, Lee and Shikamaru were by his side, holding him up.

Ever so slowly, he gazed into the eyes of Temari, Kankuro, and Baki, taking in their shocked expressions, and was trying his hardest not to laugh.

"I guess you want some answers." He finally said, dropping his gaze down to the still sleeping Gaara who was looking very much like a baby because of the way he was curled in the fetal position. Naruto almost expected him to put his thumb in his mouth and start sucking.

Gently, mindful on his injuries, the boy/man sat back down again, closer to Gaara, so he could observe his handiwork.

"What did you do?" Kankuro asked suddenly, and slightly fearfully. "Why is Gaara sleeping, and not losing control?"

"Like Naruto-kun said before," Lee spoke, knowing his best friend was tired. "He stabilized Gaara-san's seal. The previous seal was unstable, and detrimental to his health. I came across his handiwork in the forest." Lee's lips curled into a grimace. "He was bloodthirsty, volatile, and unemotional."

"Hang on!" Temari interjected. "He _was__, _you mean he isn't right now?"

Shikamaru stared at his future wife for a minute before shaking his head and stomping down the urge to take her into his arms. "No. Naruto changed the seal completely. Before, Shukaku was in control, right now, _Gaara_ is. With the seal fixed, he'll be able to sleep without letting the Tanuki take over."

"That's impossible." Baki spoke for the first time, his eyes trained on Naruto. "What you did is impossible. You, a _kozu_, changing the foundations of a seal that one of our top seal-masters created...it is impossible."

Naruto scoffed in derision. "Top seal-master? Chiyo baa-sama might be a highly respected member of Suna's council, but a seal-master she is not. I know more about seals than anyone in this village, except Jiraiya-sama."

"How did you know-"

"That's not important." Naruto sneered, his anger seeping through. "That seal was done with no effort whatsoever. There was no creativity, no thought behind it, the only purpose it served, was corrupting Gaara's mind, and allowing an entire village to live in fear." His tone was curt, and condescending. "Jinchuuriki are chosen because of their ties to the leader of a particular village. Gaara's the son of the Kazekage, and he's supposed to be loyal to that village. Theoretically, it's sound, but in this case, it backfired."

"What do you mean?" Kankuro asked, plopping down on the ground next to his brother, staring at him with an indescribable expression.

Naruto placed a hand on Gaara's shoulder, an inexplicable amount of emotion rushing towards the boy. This was his baby brother by circumstance, the one who held the youngest and most corruptible tailed-beast inside of him, the one who was picked on the most. With a sigh, he looked at Kankuro.

"You fear Gaara."

It wasn't a question.

The Suna genin hesitated, but nodded. "He's..."

"I understand." Naruto's eyes met Baki's again. "Do you know what it feels like, Baki-san, to be judged by the your Village, your _home. _To be feared? To not know a mother's touch or a father's encouragement? Do you know how it feels when people come after you, try to kill you because of the fact that you _exist_? To feel the glares on your back, not knowing why? To feel so _goddamn _alone? Do you?

The man's eyes widened for a second.

The boy let out a strangled chuckle. "Don't answer that, it was rhetorical." He took a deep breath. "But that's what all Jinchuuriki feel like. The pain, the burden we carry, makes us kin. This boy," Naruto lay a hand on Gaara's tattoo. "He is _my_ kin. As I alluded to earlier, I am the jailer of the Kyuubi, the ninth, and arguably most powerful of all the Biju. Gaara falls under _my_ protection, under my care, because he is family. Even if our inhabitants don't see it as that, _I_ do."

No one spoke.

A stray tear landed on Gaara's forehead, and Naruto wiped it away. "Though this kid may not look it, he's hurting. So much. _Too_ much. The pain, it's unbearable, especially if you don't have someone to share it with. He's supposed to protect the Village, but the very same Village wants him dead. You three are the children of the Kazekage, but when has he spared a single moment for any of you? When has he complimented you, encouraged you, told you that you were doing a good job? Instead of wanting to protect Suna, Gaara wants to destroy it, because it reminding him of the pain that he endured for so long."

Temari knelt down next to her brother, and looked at the boy who was talking. She was startled to see that his eyes glistened with un-shed tears.

"Why?" The girl whispered, choking on her words. "Why do you care?"

Naruto's eyes sharpened, his fists clenched into balls. "How can you even ask that?"

"Because no one has ever said that before." She answered simply. "No one has taken the time to see things from Gaara's perspective. No one has seen him as Gaara, only a-"

"A weapon, right?" Shikamaru interjected quietly. Temari nodded.

"All ninjas are weapons, tools for their Villages, but Jinchuuriki are the ace in holes, the _human sacrifices_ who are _meant _to be used." Lee growled. "But that is flawed logic. These so called sacrifices should be heroes, not pariahs, and it the Kages' job to make sure they are viewed as such. Any leader who does not, is not worthy of that title, and unfortunately, that means that _no_ Kage should be using that title."

"Lee." Naruto's voice took on a warning tone, and the boy backed off. After several moments of silence, the blond boy sighed, and spoke again.

"Look, we brought you here because we wanted to make sure that the seal was stable. So we'll do that, and let you folks go."

With practiced eyes, Naruto examined his handiwork, looking for any mistakes he might have made. No. So far everything looked good. Odd over odd, just like Ao-san had said. One over three. Inwardly quite proud of himself, he took a moment to observe Gaara. He would be an excellent Kazekage, just like he had been, but this time, he wouldn't die. He was going to find happiness, start a family, and live a good life. That would be Naruto's gift to him.

Scenes from Gaara's death flashed before Naruto's eyes, which caused bile to rise in his throat. No! It wouldn't happen, not if Naruto had any say in it. Shaking his head, Naruto stood and smiled softly at the other Suna shinobi.

"Everything looks fine. He should wake up by nightfall. When he does, we'll find you. Don't ask me how, but _we_ will find _you. _Okay?"

Baki still looked skeptical, but he nodded, whispered something to Temari, and had Kankuro carry Gaara bridle style. "When he wakes, I'll hold you to what you just said, Uzumaki. We're staying at the Tree-bark Inn. I assume you know where that is."

Naruto just nodded, and the three watched the Suna shinobi vanished, presumably back to to their lodging.

Shikamaru let out a sigh and nudged Naruto in the shoulder.

The blond wearily placed a hand to his temple and sat back down ago, his bruises aching.

"You can come out now, ANBU-san. We'll go to the Hokage immediately."

* * *

Tenzo thought that he had masked his chakra signature quite well, but it seemed as though Uzumaki has surprised him once again. That kid, all of them, were something else.

Even he, a hardened soldier, had felt pangs of guilt when he heard the kid talking about his burden. It wasn't an easy one to carry, and he doubted that anyone in this Village had put themselves in his shoes, except maybe for his two companions. The Nara and Guy's student. The way they talked, it sounded like they despised the idea, the very concept behind a Jinchuuriki.

"How did you know I was there?" The ANBU materialized in front of the three genin, his arms crossed over his chest.

"I sensed you the second you arrived." Uzumaki ran a hand through his already tousled hair.

"We figured that the Hokage would send someone after us." The Nara gave him a look, one that made Tenzo grin wryly under his mask. This kid really was his father's son.

"Naruto-kun is injured." The last kid spoke. His name was Lee, if Tenzo remembered correctly. Which he did. "We should not be wasting our time making small talk. Please take us to the Hokage, ANBU-san."

Guy's prodigy was right. Though Uzumaki was standing upright, his breathing was slightly erratic, and the wounds he had endured still hadn't closed properly, even though the Kyuubi was already healing them.

"Uzumaki, hold my elbow. You two have already displayed the the ability to teleport, so please go to Hokage Tower, where Hokage-sama would like to discuss a few things with all three of you."

* * *

Hiruzen was sitting behind his desk, waiting anxiously for the four of them to arrive. With him in the room, were the rest of the Konoha Jonin senseis, some select Chunins, including Iruka, Kotetsu, and Izumo, Nara Shikaku, and a handful of ANBU, though they were hidden.

The Nara Head paced the room frantically, waiting for his boys to come back. When the Hokage had contacted him about what had happened over the past five days, he had been beyond stunned, sent straight into the realm of disbelief.

Sure, he knew that his kids, and yes, he considered all of them his kids, were powerful, but to _stop_ Orochimaru, and then to _seal_ a TAILED BEAST? All of them had some serious explaining to do, not to him, but to Yoshino. She was ready to flay them alive, and then hug them so tightly, they would never escape.

That was _not_ going to be a pleasant conversation.

Shikaku had a theory though, a theory that he had put together over the past five days. It was highly implausible, but sometimes the most obscure conclusion was the right one. After this, after this he was going to talk to them, and maybe resolve the mystery that was Uzumaki Naruto and his two best friends.

A puff of smoke and the falling of leaves signaled the arrivals of those that they had been waiting for.

Shikamaru and Lee were standing rigidly upright, both of them glancing anxiously at Naruto, who was using Yamato as support. The trio's eyes widened when they saw that Shikaku was standing there as well, shock plain in his eyes as he took in Naruto's weakened state.

"Naruto-kun!" Sarutobi leaped into action, two medics following him immediately. This time, Naruto let them take off his shirt, revealing the damage that Gaara's sand had left behind. Gashes, some as big as an inch deep, covered the boy's torso and arms. Some were partially healed, but others were still oozing blood.

"M fine, Jiji." The boy was slurring his words. He clearly wasn't fine.

One by one, the medics healed and cleaned each wound, until barely visible scars remained. During this time, Shikamaru and Lee never left their positions, but had taken to analyzing exits instead. It never hurt to have an escape strategy if need be.

Ten minutes later, the medics had finished with the boy. Naruto was covered in bandages, earning snickers from Lee and Shikamaru who were promptly given a death glare by Naruto.

That didn't shut them up.

However, their expressions became serious the moment they looked at the Hokage, who was watching them carefully.

Finally, Naruto sighed and ran a hand through his hair, a movement that showed he was annoyed and stressed.

Sarutobi had a wry smile on his face. "Two times in five days Naruto-kun. Are you going for a hat-trick?"

It was Naruto's turn to turn his lips upwards. "What can I say, I guess with me...with _us,_ everything becomes complicated."

"You can say that again." Iruka muttered, still remembering the wounds that covered his favorite genin, shuddering at the memory.

"So," The Hokage's eyes hardened slightly causing the three genin to snap to attention. "Since you decided to leave before the final exam results were announced, Naruto, you are facing Hyuuga Neji, Shikamaru, you will be facing Sabaku no Temari. Lee, you had already forfeited therefore-"

"Forgive me for interrupting Hokage-sama," Shikaku cut in, eyeing the kids, especially Shikamaru. He paused, noticing how they tensed. "Before you arrived, the Hokage told me that you two are aware of Naruto's...burden."

Shikamaru didn't like the calculating look in his father's eyes one bit. It was the same look he had when he was thinking about something especially complicated.

"We know." The younger Nara said curtly.

"And we don't care." Lee finished, conviction in his voice.

Shikaku examined them for a few more moments before nodding. "Good."

The trio let out a breath that they unconsciously had been holding, something that did not escape the elder Nara's notice.

"The skill that all of you displayed today, especially you, Naruto, is something that we don't see everyday. It is clear that none of you are at a genin level." Sarutobi began slowly, gauging their reactions.

Unfortunately, there were none.

"As we said before, Hokage-sama, it is best that we stop hiding our abilities." Lee smiled without any real emotion. It was the smile of a hardened shinobi.

The wizened old man leaned back in his chair and interlaced his fingers. "And how long have you been hiding these abilities for?"

Naruto stared at the old man, trying to see what his angle was. "A while."

Sarutobi chuckled and wagged a finger in Naruto's face. "That won't work, kiddo. How long?"

The blond clenched his fingers. "Oh well, it was worth a try." He turned to Shikaku. "Nara-sama," Gone was the casual _Shikaku-san_, that he normally used. "When you first asked how we knew each other, we said that had been training together. While this is the truth, we never told you for how long."

He took a deep breath and looked at the Hokage straight in the eye. "We've been training together for six years."

The old man couldn't detect any deception, because there was none. Technically, Naruto and Shikamaru had been sixteen, while Lee had been seventeen, when they began training as a team, and they were all twenty-two or twenty-three mentally speaking, so that was six years.

Kakashi let out a breath. That would mean that Naruto had been _six_ when he began training. Come to think about it, that was also the time when he had started to wear that ridiculous orange jump-suit. Was this the reason why? However, to hide for that long, to _deceive the Hokage_ for that long, it showed skill, and talent, something that ANBU looked for.

"Naruto..." Iruka said softly, still in disbelief that these _dead-lasts_ of the Academy, had this much potential.

"Hokage-sama," Shikamaru gave him a small bow. "We have already told you our reasoning behind hiding these skills."

"Indeed you have, Shikamaru-kun." He puffed on his pipe, watching the ringlets of smoke disappear. "Before we get to what happened during Lee-kun's fight, I hope you all realize that the other nations present will be taking an interest in you." _Especially you, Naruto_.

"We know. And this is why we believe that these exams are the best way to solidify our crumbling relation with Sunagakure." Naruto stated.

Shikaku raised an eyebrow at that, but inwardly tensed. "Care to explain, Naruto-kun?"

The boy looked around the room, snorting slightly. "Come on. Each and every one of us knows that the treaty we have with them is nothing but a farce. Suna is our ally in name only. Should a war break out, Suna will _not_ come to our aid. Hell, no nation would. We would be alone. It appears as though the new Mizukage is trying to make amends for the past, but it will take time, maybe a year or so, for Kiri to rebuild itself. Suna is our only shot at building a solid alliance at this very moment."

The shinobi in the room stiffened, knowing the kid was correct.

"Today, what you saw was probably the foundation for a new treaty." Lee said solemnly.

"How can you be so sure?" Kotestu inquired, his curiosity creeping through.

"The genin, the one that Lee fought, is Naruto's..." Shikamaru paused, wondering how to word what he wanted to say. "He's Naruto's brother by circumstance, a fellow Jinchuuriki, and the son of the Kazekage." _Who is probably dead by now_. The Nara didn't add his thoughts to the conversation.

"That's right!" Asuma stroked his beard. "You said something about younger siblings not hurting their older ones on purpose."

Those who hadn't heard this stared at Naruto with curious and inquisitive eyes.

Naruto nodded. "Shukaku recognized me, or rather, the Kyuubi right away. Gaara's seal was pathetically flimsy, and couldn't filter the Ichibi's chakra, like my seal does. The beast influenced Gaara, calling himself Gaara's _mother_. I think he has serious issues with his sexuality..."

There were a few laughs at that.

"But the point is, if Gaara had a seal like the one I made from the beginning, then Shukaku never would have been able to have such a hold over Gaara. He wasn't able to sleep, because if he did, the tanuki would take over." Naruto finished quietly.

Silence.

A few faces in the room looked like they couldn't belive that _Uzumaki Naruto_ had created a seal like that! One so powerful, that it repressed a Biju.

"Uzumaki." Genma chewed on his senbon, staring intently at the blond. "Answer this honestly."

"Hai."

"Are you a Seal Master?"

Besides him, Shikamaru shot the Jonin a glance.

Ah.

Should he answer that honestly, or should he lie? That was the question. On his other side, Lee tilted his head in the smallest of movements.

Lee wanted him to tell the truth. And Shikamaru...he just sighed and muttered a quiet _troublesome _under his breath.

"I am...becoming one...hopefully." Another half truth. These were piling up, and really going to bite all of them in the butts someday soon.

Genma whistled. "If that's what a master in training can do, I shudder to think what a true master can do."

The boy stiffened, a sad and melancholic look shining through his eyes.

"You're looking at what a true master did, Genma-senpai. The Yondaime sealed the fox into me, didn't he? And he lost his life because of it." Closing his eyes, mourning for his father and mother, Naruto didn't see the flinches going through the room, and the flashes of guilt that nearly everyone had on their faces.

There was something..._off_ about Naruto's statement though, and it was raising red-flags in Shikaku's mind. Becoming as fluent in seals as Naruto had been entailed studying scrolls, studying _Uzumaki_ scrolls, that Naruto definitely didn't have access to. Not everyone could become a master. In fact, the only one who could call themselves a master were Uzumaki Mito-sama, Kushina, Minato, and Jiraiya, and that was because they were either Uzumakis, or they held close ties to the Uzumakis.

Sealing was in the kid's blood, there was no doubt about that, but to be so proficient...it was mind boggling.

"Naruto-kun."

The boy's blue eyes met his own.

"Are you aware of the Uzumaki Clan's legacy?"

"Shikaku!"

The elder Nara ignored the Hokage, and focused on the boy in front of him, who had just looked shocked.

"The Uzumaki Clan's legacy?" Iruka repeated, not even knowing there was such a thing. Some of the others were thinking the same thing, but most were aware of what the Jonin Commander was alluding to.

"Naruto-kun?"

Naruto gritted his teeth, inwardly cursing the Naras for being so damn perceptive. To this, he had to answer with the complete truth. Explaining it was going to be a nightmare...

Shikamaru knew that this was going to happen as he and Lee exchanged glances. His father was the most brilliant mind in the Village. Of course he was going to ask these questions...

"If you are referring to my Clan's history of being Seal Masters and having an exceptional life force, then yes, yes I am aware of the Uzumaki Clan's legacy."

There was a satisfied gleam in the Commander's eyes that Naruto couldn't help but grin at.

"Which leads me to my next question, and I think you know what it is." The older man studied the boy's expression closely, watching as it went from annoyance to pain to muted happiness.

Naruto's eyes flickered to the portrait of the Fourth, a soft smile on his face. "Yeah, I know."

The Hokage's eyes widened. How? "Naruto..."

Kakashi stood a bit straighter, his one visible eye boring into Naruto's own. "You know?" His voice sounded a bit strangled.

The boy swiveled to his sensei. "I know. I've known for a long time."

"And you never said anything? Never asked me..." Kakashi trailed off, not able to finish his sentence. However Naruto could.

_You never asked me why I never took you?_

To the older man's surprise though, Naruto simply shook his head. "I get it sensei, I honestly do. And I don't blame you. You were young, just a bit older than us. What were you going to do with a baby like me? Technically, you were an adult, but could you honestly picture yourself at _fifteen_, changing my diapers. When I first found out, I had every intention to find you, beat you to the ground, and force you to adopt me. But that's stupid. You're trying to make amends now, right? You're my teacher after all. I want to thank you for the night cap, by the way, and for looking out for me when I was a kid."

Kakashi stared at Naruto for a moment, a bitter smile twisting its way on to his face under the mask. He didn't deserve a damn word of praise. He deserved a slap on the face, a rasengan to the balls, and a chance to redo the past. He was a coward, one who had shirked his responsibility to the boy who was supposed to be his only family.

"Truly Naruto, you are the most unpredictable ninja. And, you are your father's son. He would have said the same thing had he been in your shoes."

His student looked startled for a moment, and his eyes looked awfully shiny. It was the first time that anyone had acknowledged that Naruto was indeed his father's son. At least in this timeline.

"_Arigato_."

"He's like his mother." Shikaku deadpanned. "The pranks that you've pulled over the years are eerily reminiscent of what your mom did back in the day."

Naruto smirked, puffing out his chest in pride. "We Uzumakis are born pranksters after all."

"Um, forgive me if I'm a bit lost here, but what exactly are you talking about?" Iruka scratched his head sheepishly.

Shikamaru sighed, placing a hand on the bridge of his nose, which caused his father to snort. "Explain."

Naruto shot his best friend a look, but smiled at his older brother figure. "Allow me to introduce myself to you, Iruka-sensei. My name is Uzumaki Naruto, son of Uzumaki Kushina, and...Namikaze Minato, also known as the Yondaime Hokage."

Iruka looked around, trying to see if this was a joke, but all he saw was pride on the Sandaime's face, regret on Kakashi's, and sadness on everyone else, except for a couple Chuunins who looked like they had been electrocuted.

"Kami above." The scarred Chunin breathed in. "You're..."

"Namikaze Naruto." The boy rubbed his chin. "Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto I suppose. When you think about it, doesn't it make sense? Why would the Yondaime choose a random orphan to seal the fox into, when his son was there?" A hint of resentment crept into Naruto's voice. For so long, he had wondered _why him_? And then during Pein's invasion, he had received his answer.

"Finally." Lee muttered, happy that his best friend once again earned the name that he had become Hokage under.

"You knew?" Hiruzen rubbed his temples. "Wait, don't answer that, of course you knew."

The trio chuckled.

"They're my best friends." Naruto admitted, getting a soft punch on the shoulder from Lee and a ruffle of his hair from Shikamaru. "My brothers really. I can share anything with them, and know that they won't judge."

"The reverse is true as well." Shikamaru added, a fond look on his face.

Shikaku observed the trio in front of him with speculative, yet soft eyes.

Brothers indeed. Brothers forged from years of familiarity, years of training, years of surviving together.

Brothers of war.

"Naruto." The Hokage stood, his eyes watery. Why Naruto? Why these three? Why did they have to carry such a load on their shoulders, one that no other genin in their generation had? Why?

Striding over to the genin, he engulfed him in the biggest hug he could. Naruto stiffened for just a moment, before copying the Sandaime.

"I...I have made mistakes, my child. And a good leader admits that he has made these mistakes so that he may learn from them. The last thing your parents wanted was for this Village to see you as a hero." The Sandaime's tone took on an edge of hostility. "It has not done that, and I am to blame. I had hoped, _prayed_, that by making the Kyuubi illegal to talk about, the younger generation would not hold the same hatred that their parents held."

"Hatred breeds hatred." Naruto murmured quietly, wiggling out of the old man's embrace, his eyes sharp, tone quiet. He wished the Sandaime would stop admitting these mistakes and _act _on them instead.

"A parent is the guiding force for a child. A child is only going to copy the movements of their parents so that they can emulate them. I'll admit, I couldn't understand for the longest time _why_ everyone hated me, but then I made friends, and those friends became my family. This is how I was able to survive. And that's why Gaara wasn't. He had no one. Even his own siblings held no love for him." The boy paused before continuing, knowing that they were all paying attention to him. Of course they were. He was using his _Hokage_ voice after all.

"Every Jinchuuriki, no matter how assimilated in society, goes through the same pain. That's why I could call Gaara my brother. We are tied together by cruel circumstances, meant to be tools for a village, a weapon. The Kyuubi has always been Konoha's. First Mito baa-sama, then my mother, and then me."

Sharp intakes of breath were heard. Sarutobi's brow crinkled. Now _that_ was not something that Naruto should know.

"That's right. Every Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi has been an Uzumaki. This is why my mother was brought to Konoha after Uzu was destroyed. Not only was she a direct relative of the Senju Clan, she had the potential to take over Mito baa-sama's position due to her special chakra. All of us have tremendous chakra reserves, even if we don't have the Kyuubi, which makes us prime candidates to become jailers for the beasts. Tsunade-sama could have also become the Jinchuuriki, but she was older, therefore her chakra coils were developed, and she was only one-fourth Uzumaki."

"How do know this, Naruto?" Hiruzen asked, a tinge of suspicion creeping through his question.

"Once I learned who my parents were, I researched everything I could about my Clan, and connected the dots." He answered swiftly. Perhaps too swiftly, judging by the way Shikaku narrowed his eyes at him, and how Sarutobi gave him a look that said _bullshit_.

"Except for you, Hokage-sama, Naruto-kun is related to each of the Hokages." Lee added, his eyes shining in amusement.

Sarutobi chuckled softly. "That he is, Lee-kun. That he is." He would deal with Naruto's little slip later. Right now, he was beyond weary, and was sure that the three kids in front of him felt even worse.

For several moments, silence permeated the room. No one spoke after what had just transpired.

Shikaku clapped his hands together, startling nearly everyone. There was a deceptively cheery smile on his face, one that sent shivers down Shikamaru's spine.

"I think it's time to take these kids home! They've been through quite a bit, especially Naruto, and all of them need to rest. Isn't that right, boys?" The trio were forced to nod due to the expression on the scarred Jonin's face.

"H...Hai!"

Ignoring the amused looks on everyone's faces, Shikaku enveloped the three boys in a bear hug, ensuring they couldn't escape, and vanished in a puff of smoke.

For seconds, those in the room stared at the dissipating smoke, not knowing what they could possibly say or do.

"Kakashi." The Hokage spoke suddenly.

"Hokage-sama."

"Naruto knows his heritage." Sarutobi's face softened. "I think it's time that we give him some of his father and mother's heirlooms."

"Hai." Kakashi smiled ever so slightly. He knew what he was going to give his student. After all, that photo-album was just gathering dust under his bed. Perhaps later, he and Naruto could look at it together, while Kakashi regaled tales of how his father had persuaded his mother to go out on a date with him right after she had threatened to cut off his...manly parts..with a rusty kunai. It was all because he had not told her that he had a S-ranked mission.

Minato-sensei did have balls of steel...

"Neko."

Immediately, a purple haired ANBU came into view, kneeling in front of her leader. "Hokage-sama."

"I have no doubt that you heard that entire conversation. It's time for you to do your duty for that child, for all three of them. Regardless of what happened in the exam, those three are clearly not suited to be genin. See what you can do."

Uzuki Yugao, the woman behind the mask, the one who had tested Naruto on the day of the first part of the Exams couldn't have agreed more. Perhaps they would agree to become Chuunins, and graduate on to a specialized ANBU team.

"Gai, Asuma."

"Hokage-sama." Two identical murmurs were heard.

"My student is set to arrive by nightfall. Make sure that he doesn't hit any bathhouses or brothels."

"..."

"That's an order."

"..."

"..."

The Hokage sighed. Maybe he should do it himself. Telling Jiraiya that Naruto had discovered his heritage was probably a good motivating factor in getting the man to actually take over his god-fatherly duties.

* * *

The group of four landed in the Nara Clan's backyard which was conspicuously empty at the moment.

"I didn't believe half of what you said in there." Shikaku stated point blank, dark eyes roving over each of them, studying their body language, like how Shikamaru's left arm tensed ever so slightly, how Lee automatically reached for a hidden kunai, how Naruto unconsciously fingered the pack on his pant leg.

None of them spoke.

Dusk was nearly upon them. Shadows enveloped the open space, giving it an almost ominous look.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking recently." The elder Nara sighed softly. "Ever since you brought these two puppies home, Shika." He noticed how his son moved closer to Naruto, while Naruto moved closer to Lee.

They were guarding each other.

"See, I have this crazy theory. A theory that is so unbelievable, that it must be true."

"Oh, and why is that?" Naruto tried, and knew that he had desperately failed at keeping the hardness out of his voice. Damn it! He knew the Naras were smart, but to figure it out after only two months! Kami above!

Shikaku smirked. He had them in a corner. And then, he knew his theory was correct. But he just had to mess with them a bit more.

The kunai that the man threw didn't even make it halfway to Naruto before it had stopped by Lee, and he was trapped in his son's shadow, with the very same kunai that he had thrown pressed into his jugular courtesy of Gai's student.

The target himself made no attempt to move, opting to observe the older man in front of him with narrowed eyes. The very same eyes that Minato had when he was about to use the legendary _Hiraishin_.

"Enough."

Ah, there it was. The tone that Shikaku had been waiting to hear. The tone that _truly_ proved his theory to be correct.

Reluctantly, Shikamaru dropped the jutsu, and Lee handed the kunai back to Shikaku, warily backing up to stand in front of Naruto who simply rolled his eyes and let out a snort.

"A theory so unbelievable, that it must be true, eh?" The blond shook his head, mirth present in his twinkling eyes. By his side, Lee and Shikamaru relaxed before slumping their shoulders in resignation.

"Nothing gets past you, does it, Oyaji." The younger Nara sighed.

"I'm your father, Shikamaru." As if that answered everything.

Lee let out a small chuckle. "The Nara Clan truly provides the most brilliant minds."

Shikaku sat down on the grass, motioning for the trio to do the same. He noticed that they looked much...lighter, like a burden had been lifted off of them.

"Time travel huh?"

Naruto nodded, ducking his head almost bashfully. "You're right, Shikaku-san." The camaraderie was back. "Time travel."

"How many years?" The man's tone was soft, yet curious.

"Ten." Shikamaru replied, a haunted look going through his eyes.

"That bad?"

"Worse." Lee ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up much like Naruto's. "It was..._hell. _We won but... We...failed."

"Could you..." Shikaku paused, taking in Lee's words, "Tell me?"

There was a pause, and the trio communicated silently, using only facial expressions or gestures. The more that Shikaku saw, the more he wondered how _anyone_ could have missed such a big change. Oh sure, the kids had come up with a pretty plausible story. But seriously, it had so many holes in it, that Shikaku was beginning to doubt the thinking abilities of the Jonins he commanded. Plus the Hokage...

_Never_ was it in any records, that Uzumaki Kushina had been the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi or that she had special chakra. The elders had purposely kept it that way. Hell, even _he_ hadn't known that until Naruto had told them.

The situation with Suna was supposed to classified, as in, not even on paper. There was absolutely no way that they could have known that Konoha basically had no allies. Not unless they were somehow present during all the Jonin meetings, or of course, they had experienced something that had led them to that conclusion. The latter was now the truth.

But, there were somethings that he did believe. Like how his son and Lee truly couldn't care less about the Kyuubi. For that, he was proud.

"Oyaji," Shikamaru's voice brought him back to the present. Right. Time travel. Ten years.

"We've decided..." His son looked hesitant, but after Naruto gave him an encouraging nod, he continued. "That it's best if you knew _some_ of what the future holds."

"I guess that you know that I am...or rather I was...or I will be..." Naruto trailed off, looking quite confused.

"The Hokage?" Shikaku supplied, internally guffawing at how the kid who had yelled very loudly every day about how he would become the greatest Hokage of all time actually accomplished his dream.

Naruto nodded, but there was a glimmer of pain in his eyes. "The Rokudaime to be exact."

"The loyalty that you three show to each other already established that you were the Hokage, Naruto-kun." Shikaku said lightly. "And Shikamaru, I suppose you were the Hokage's right hand, with Lee being his left."

The two boys nodded.

"I was Captain of Tactical Operations." Came Shikamaru's rather dead response.

"I was Captain of the Ground Forces." Lee pushed himself off the ground angrily and began to pace furiously. "We were at war, had been for six years. All of the current genin in our generation, we were either sixteen or seventeen, thrust into this mess by forces that were beyond our comprehension."

"Lee..." Naruto tried to reach a hand out to the boy, but he ignored it, which was a first.

"No Naruto-kun! Please, let me go on!" His eyes met Naruto's imploringly, and Naruto nodded, allowing him to continue.

Shikaku watched in fascination at the dynamics between the three. Naruto had the Hokage genes...literally. He must have a damn good leader for his son, the one who _abhorred_ taking orders, to follow him, even if it was his duty. It didn't hurt that the kid was also very powerful. Then again, they all were. But _six years_ of war? No wonder they were so close. What kind of hellish place had they come from?_  
_

"For your sake, Shikaku-san, we will not reveal the dirty details regarding who we were fighting. However, let's just say the the enemy was...truly a monster." Lee's jaw clenched. "For six long years, we had been going back and forth, winning, losing, winning, losing, and eventually winning, but losing at the same time." He kicked the ground with such force, that Shikaku felt it vibrating beneath him.

"We lost eighty percent of our forces before Naruto brought us back here." Shikamaru grimaced.

Shikaku's eyes widened. Eighty percent? Who was this enemy?

"Hang on, Naruto brought you back?"

"Technically, it was the Kyuubi." The boy/man rubbed the back of his head. "All I did was modify my father's legendary seal."

The Nara stroked his beard. "Did the fox want to do this from the _kindness_ of his heart, or was it for self preservation?"

**Both.**

Kurama's deep rumble drew out a small grin from Naruto. So the furry fluffball was sort of functional.

**I heard that, idiot.**

"The Biju are entities that we humans cannot comprehend. You should know, by that point in the war, the fox was under my control. From what he told me, there is a jutsu, so old and obscure, that only the tailed-beasts are privy to its knowledge. That jutsu is time travel. The fox also said that all Biju have a sixth sense of sorts, that allows them to view the future I suppose. To tell you the truth, I don't even know if that _is_ the truth." Naruto's grin widened when he felt the seal heat up.

"My point is, he told me that my future, our futures, had somehow been altered, and that life was not supposed to end with just us left. So he told me what I had to do. I did it, grabbed these two, and all of a sudden, we were back ten years in the past, with the memories of the future, and all of our power."

"And shit control over it." Shikamaru sighed.

Shikaku digested what..._his_ future Hokage was telling him. So apparently, when all hope was lost, the fox, the very same being that had _destroyed_ Konoha, was _helping_ to keep it from being destroyed a second time.

"You have control over...it?" He asked slowly, wanting to make sure that he had heard correctly.

Naruto let out a huff. "Not _it_,..._him_. He has a name you know. And once you start using it, turns out the big guy turns all soft and mushy. But, to even learn his name, you must proceed to beat the living snot out of him."

**I let you beat me. **The fox was definitely sulking.

_Dream on, fluffball, dream on._

Shikaku blinked. And then he blinked again. And again.

And then he laughed a laugh which the wind carried up to the heavens. Because the image of _Naruto_ beating the Kyuubi was so ironically fitting, and utterly hilarious, that he couldn't help but laugh.

Shikamaru looked at his father, the bubble of emotion that he had kept hidden threatening to burst at any moment now. A hand on his shoulder caused him to look up.

Of course.

Naruto.

He was always there when you needed him, always there when you wanted to talk, to fight, to do whatever. He was their rock, their leader, and damn it! They were going to follow him to the ends of the Earth if need be.

"Let it go, Shika. Go to him." The boy's voice was so soft, that Shikamaru almost didn't hear it. But when he did, he wasted no time in bounding over to his father and sitting beside him, reveling in the older man's silent strength, his heat, his protective hand around his shoulder.

"Judging by the fact that you haven't willingly sat close to me since you were three, I would say that I'm dead."

When Shikaku felt his son stiffen and say nothing, he let out a wry chuckle. "It's okay kiddo. That's why you three are here now right? To make sure that I don't die?"

There was definitely something wet of the older Nara's arm, but he made no comment, just letting his kid lean on him. This was something that he could get used to.

Lee looked at the father/son pair with some jealousy. He had never had a father, only knowing that both of his parents had been killed when he was two. Gai-sensei was the closest thing that he had to a parental figure, but even then...it wasn't enough. One glance at Naruto told him that his Hokage was thinking the same thing.

Life did not always give you what you wanted. Lee had discovered what true family was, and then he had lost it all. However, the man who he considered a younger brother, had given them a chance, a chance to change, a chance to make what wasn't there, there.

"If you're the Rokudaime," Shikaku beckoned the other two over. "Who's the Godaime?"

A melancholic look came over Naruto before he sighed and snorted. "Tsunade baa-chan."

To his credit, the elder Nara didn't react much. All he did was nod his head and not ask too many questions as to why she had become Hokage.

"_Baa-chan?"_

Naruto let out a true laugh, one that reminded Shikaku so much of Minato, that it was as if he had been reborn into his kid. "It's kind of true though isn't it? She's old enough to be my grandmother despite the henge, and I never failed to tell her that. Plus, she really is my baa-chan, so I'm not being _too_ disrespectful towards her.'

"But you should have seen her face the first time Naruto called her that in public. She looked furious." Shikamaru chuckled.

"And then she flicked one finger against his forehead." Lee added, his voice tinged with happiness and amusement. "That wall wasn't fully repaired until a couple years later."

"It hurt." Naruto finished lamely. "But...she liked it. Not that she would ever admit that..."

"I found a book in your room, a couple of them actually." Shikaku said suddenly causing the three to stare at him before their faces fell into realization.

"We did leave the house in a bit of a hurry that day." Lee mused, not sounding too upset.

"Did my book...?" Naruto trailed off, looking at Shikaku quizzically.

The man nodded, and grimaced. "It stung." He scowled at the blond when Naruto laughed.

"Gomen, but you really shouldn't touch our stuff!"

"Yeah, I kind of figured." Shikaku rubbed a hand over his stubbly cheeks. "May I know what the initials _OR _and _RS_ stand for?"

The trio looked at each other before Naruto shrugged. "I assume you found Shikamaru's Kage Jutsu notebook. In that case, OR stands for _Odama Rasengan _and RS stands for _RasenShuriken_." The boy/man looked vaguely proud of himself.

"So you learned your father's famed technique eh? And expanded on it?" The Clan Head couldn't help but marvel at Naruto's prowess. The Rasengan, as far as anyone knew, was only used by Minato and Jiraiya. It was incredibly complicated and took years-

"I learned it in a week."

Scratch that.

"A week?" Shikaku's incredulous tone only made the three laugh.

"Naruto-kun has a way of turning the impossible, into the possible. We were told that he learned it so quickly because of a bet." Lee grinned. "It took a little longer for him to come up with _RasenShuriken._"

"That's because adding my chakra nature to it was quite the pain." Naruto pouted.

Right. So this child...this man, in front of Shikaku had added his own chakra nature, something that even Minato couldn't do, to one of the most deadly attacks known to any Shinobi.

Unbelievable.

"Your element is wind?" That was a safe question.

Naruto nodded. "Wind is my primary, but water and fire are secondaries due to-"

"Your mother and the fox." Shikaku finished for him. He turned to his son. "Lightning for you, I presume. You do use an awful lot of _Raiton_ Jutsus."

Shikamaru cocked his head to the side. "Yep, but like Naruto, I have a secondary affinity to fire."

Shikaku looked at the last member of the group, the only one who couldn't use chakra, but was so good at Taijutsu, that he truly didn't need to. "And you, Lee-kun, you can open all the gates?"

"He's called Konoha's Green Beast in the future, just like Gai-sensei." Shikamaru snickered. "When we first came here, even the gentlest kick from him knocked down a handful of trees. Plus, with those ridiculous weights he wears, he's a speed freak."

"I prefer to think that he's an adrenaline junky." Naruto added in sagely.

"Oi!" Lee growled. "As the eldest out of the three of us, I demand some respect." His voice was hard, but his eyes were dancing with amusment.

The other two sobered up and bowed deeply. "Hai onii-sama!"

Lee scowled, and spread his limbs out in the soft grass with a small _thud_. "Troublesome."_  
_

Shikaku took one look at the time traveler, and burst into uncontrollable laughter again, something that was so uncharacteristic, that his son raised a brow at him.

"You're habits have rubbed off of on him, on both of them." The man explained to his son who smirked.

"You have no idea." Naruto sighed. "I used to think that cloud-watching was a drag, but Shikamaru showed me the beauty of it. Now, I can't live without it."

A pleasant silence descended over the group. They just sat on the ground beneath them, watching as dusk fell to cast shadows on the forest that was beyond their line of vision. The shadows danced to a tune set by the dimming light coming from the sky. Brilliant hues of crimson, orange, gold, and violet coated the wide expanse of the sky, slowly turning into an inky indigo, flecked with black. The tiny white stars added the finishing touch to the mosaic.

A gentle wind cradled the treetops, making them sway to and fro.

The night couldn't be more perfect. Nothing could rui-

"NARA SHIKAMARU! UZUMAKI NARUTO! ROCK LEE! AND YOU MY PATHETIC EXCUSE AS A HUSBAND! GET YOUR ASSES INSIDE BEFORE I PADDLE THEM WITH THIS SPOON IN MY HAND! DON'T THINK I DON'T SEE YOU OUT THERE!"

Yoshino's voice startled them to a standing position. Four faces blanched, and four pants felt decidedly wet.

"Just so you know. She's doing this out of love." Shikaku stated, his voice trembling slightly. "Out of love."

"I've seen the whites of my enemies eyes, but this is possible the scariest thing in the world." Naruto muttered.

"You two should possibly call her _b__aa-chan_. That'll make her melt. Like, _Yoshino baa-chan, we are truly sorry for causing you to worry_." Shikamaru gulped.

"IN HERE...NOW!"

"Come comrades. Let us go to our deaths together." Lee took a shuddering deep breath.

Go to their deaths indeed.

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

Scorned of the chance to watch her children do the impossible.

* * *

Jiraiya had a lot of regrets in his life.

First, he wasn't as perverted as he made himself to be. People tended to underestimate him if had that perverted image though. That didn't mean he didn't worship the enigmatic race of women to the nth degree.

His first book, that in his humble opinion, was his best book, was not a best-seller. That's what made him start to write those idiotic books that Kakashi and the Sandaime loved.

He hadn't convinced his supposed best friend to stay in Konoha. That stung.

He hadn't drank Sake with Gamabunta until they had fought in the Second War together.

He hadn't been able to tell the only woman he had ever loved, how he felt about her. If that wasn't a regret, then he didn't know what was.

He didn't have the guts to tell Minato that he was the son he had always wanted.

He couldn't tell Kushina how much she reminded him of Tsunade, and that he wished that he could hold her like a daughter.

He couldn't make Tsunade stay after the Kyuubi attack.

He let himself be convinced by those old farts in the Council of Elders that he should leave Konoha to rebuild the Spy Network.

He was never there for his remaining family. Naruto. His godson. A grandchild.

He was never there to show him what a hug felt like.

He was never there to take him out to the park.

He was never there to teach him what he had taught his father.

He was never there to comfort the kid when he had nightmares.

He was never there to buy him ramen.

He was never there.

Perhaps that was his biggest regret.

He, like so many others, had failed Minato and Kushina's child.

Unfortunately, though he had an excuse, it felt pathetic to his ears.

So as he sat in front of his Sensei, listening to what had happened because of his godson and two friends, the regrets that Jiraiya held came crashing down on him.

"He..._knows_?" The white haired man was doing an incredible job of keeping his face passive up until the point where the Sandaime had told him that Naruto knew of his parents, and that Kushina was the second Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi.

Hiruzen looked grave, and older than he had ever been. "Yes."

Jiraiya slumped back in his chair, swallowing the bitter taste of failure. His emotions were going haywire, but were settling down somewhere self-loathing and guilt. The two went hand in hand.

"Doe he know about me?"

His sensei faltered slightly, not quite meeting Jiraiya's eyes. "I...I don't know. He talked about knowing that he was Minato and Kushina's son, but I don't think he knows just how close he is to you, or Tsunade for that matter."

"Tsunade was Kushina's aunt, making her Naruto's as well. And I...we..." The man trailed off, not stopping the hot tears from sliding down his face.

Sarutobi's heart clenched at the sight of his broken student. "He still treasures the wallet you gave him. _Gama-chan_, as he calls it."

Jiraiya's eyes brightened for a moment before dulling even further. "It would have been better if I gave it to him face to face, rather than asking you to give it. That just shows what a coward I was...the coward that I still am."

"Jiraiya..." There was nothing that Sarutobi could say that would make his student feel better.

Luckily, a knock on the door prevented both men from descending into a state of extreme brooding.

The secretary peeked her head into the room and gave respectful bows to both men. "Forgive me, Hokage-sama, Jiraiya-sama, but there is a Mizu Jonin waiting to see you. He says that it is urgent."

The old man's eyes narrowed, as did his student's. A Mizu Jonin? This sounded quite suspicious.

"Send him in." Hiruzen barked, while Jiraiya stood, and lazed casually by his teacher's desk, the sharp glint in his eyes not casual at all.

Both men tensed when a man, with spiky blue hair, an eyepatch, and earrings walked into the room, holding a scroll in one hand. There was a small smirk playing on his face when he looked on Jiraiya, and he half-bowed to the legendary Sannin.

"Ao," Jiraiya breathed in, a smirk of his own expanding on his face, "Kiri's _Bloody Sensor_, the _Ryuketsu no Soshi._"

"Jiraiya-sama." Ao tilted his head slightly. "Your help in the past few months has been indispensable for Kiri, and the Mizukage."

The Hokage looked from one man to the other, surprise showing on his weathered face. "Jiriaya...you..."

His student waved off any questions. "It's all in the report, Sensei. I played a small role in bringing order to Kiri. Ao here, as well as Mei-ch...Mei-sama, they were crucial."

The blue haired man snorted. "Nice catch by the way. Mei-sama nearly chopped your nuts off after you called her Mei-chan."

"I still have the scars." Jiraiya muttered. His thoughts turned to the buxom lady who packed a mean lunch. Everyone immediately ignored the lecherous grin that gave away the man's thoughts.

"Ao-san." The Hokage gestured for the man to sit. "I assume that catching up with my student was not why you came here tonight. Seeing as all of your students are disqualified as well, please enlighten me as to why you are here."

The man's visible eye was as hard as the Hokage's. He set the scroll that he had brought with him on Sarutobi's desk. The two Konoha shinobi could see that it was addressed to the Mizukage.

"I am not here to talk about any Kiri nin, Hokage-sama. I'm here to talk about one of your own."

Hiruzen closed his eyes. He had an idea as to which one. For Kami's sake! This was getting ridiculous...

"The genin with the surname of Uzumaki, he has piqued my interest."

Of course he had...

"And why is that, Ao-san?" The Hokage asked wearily.

"As both of you are aware, that name, _Uzumaki_, once made a man tremble in fear. It was as deadly as Senju or Uchiha, if not more so. However, the Second Shinobi War wiped out that clan, or, more correctly, sent the survivors into hiding. By the third war, nearly every Uzumaki had taken a different name, or no name at all, and thus the Uzumaki Clan descended into history. Out of sight, out of mind." Ao took a moment to gauge their reactions. Both seemed to be following his words very closely.

"And how does this relate to Naruto-kun?" Sarutobi inquired, linking his fingers together.

"Uzumaki Naruto, the remarkable genin, who is clearly beyond that rank, and his two friends, have shown me that the Uzumaki Clan is still strong. His sealing prowess is proof enough." The Jonin remembered the moment when the boy returned back to the other Konoha nin. The look in his eye, the look of triumph, was one that he had worn on many an occasion.

"That doesn't answer my question." The Hokage's tone was sharper, more harsh now. "Why have you taken such an interest in him?"

"Besides the fact that he is the Yondaime's son?" Ao deadpanned, enjoying the looks of shock, which transformed into guarded expressions.

"How?" Jiraiya inquired simply.

Ao resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "The blond hair and blue eyes were a dead give away. No one in this land, not even those Yamanakas have that exact shade of hair or eyes. But his last name, it's not Namikaze. It's Uzumaki. Which of course got me thinking as to who his mother could be. And that, led me to only one name." His fists clenched at the memory of his distant cousin. "Uzumaki Kushina, the Princess of Whirlpool."

Jiraiya let out a shuddering breath while the Hokage seemed to collapse onto himself.

"Relax, Hokage-sama. Due to my familiarity with the Uzumaki Clan, I was able to make the connection."

The Sannin examined Ao carefully. "You are a member?"

Ao nodded. "My grandmother was part of the clan. But I'm not as directly related to Naruto-san as the Mizukage is."

The Jonin enjoyed the incredulous look he was getting from both of them.

"Terumi Mei, a woman who's hair, though auburn, is not red, is part of the Uzumaki Clan?"

"Hai. She is Kushina-sama's second cousin, through her mother, and therefore is not related to the Senju Clan like Kushina-sama was. That scroll," Ao gestured towards it, "Is to let her know that one of her Clan members, her cousin, has been found. I thought it best to notify the Hokage before sending it. After all, it concerns on of your shinobi who is also the son of the _Kiroi__ Senko_."

"I assume, that if and when she receives this scroll, she will want to come to Konoha, to see Naruto-kun." Sarutobi inquired.

The Mizu nin nodded. "Actually, I think that this will help in rebuilding the treaty between Kiri and Konoha. Kiri is recovering, no matter how slow it is. Yagura's reign left us...shattered. And I lived through that." His handsome face contorted into one of pain and loathing. "However, with Mei-sama as our leader, we are coming back, as one people, as one united nation."

"So you're saying that if Kiri knows that one of Konoha's genin is part of your Kage's Clan, then they will be more favorable to building a stable relationship with us?" Jiraiya concluded slowly. "However, won't that put a price on Naruto's head?"

Ao shuddered slightly. "Mei-sama is...protective when it comes to family, she won't let anything happen to the boy. And that's using the word _protective_ loosely. Aside from me, she hasn't met another living Uzumaki, and certainly not one as closely related to her as Naruto-san. Besides, he seems like he can take care of himself. When she finds out about Naruto-san, and if Konoha tries to deny her visiting rights, I...I hesitate to think what might happen."

Jiraiya couldn't help but snicker at that. Yes, he had met the fiesty woman who was reforming a broken nation. She had spunk, sass, and a great ass...that in itself should have told him that she was an Uzumaki. He had unfortunately also seen her temper, and she was probably the third scariest woman in the world, the first being Tsunade, and the second being Kushina. How odd that all of them had Uzumaki blood running through their veins.

"I have a feeling that the scroll is going to be sent, no matter what we say here." The Hokage said wryly. "It would be a welcome change to have the Mizukage in Konoha, cheering for a Konoha nin."

"I agree, Hokage-sama." Ao replied, giving both men a real smile. "My cousin, or cousins, as I should say, will be pleased no doubt, especially when the _Prince of Whirlpool_ has been found."

The fact that Ao could hear crickets chirping would have been amusing in any other situation.

"Please tell me this is a joke." Jiraiya said flatly. "My Godson..." He trailed off, shaking his head in disbelief.

Ao narrowed his eyes briefly. Obviously Naruto-san had close ties with his father's sensei, but Jiraiya-sama was the boy's godfather? How...unexpected. "Forgive me, but it is true. Even if Whirlpool was destroyed many years ago, that does not negate the fact that Kushina-sama was to Uzu no Kuni, what Tsunade-sama is to Konoha. This makes her son royalty."

The Hokage pinched the bridge of his nose, and Ao had a feeling that the old man had been doing that motion many times today. Finally, he simply sighed. "Ao-san, do what you must. We hope to see Mizukage-sama during the final exams, and we will inform Naruto-kun about the situation. I would highly suggest seeking the boy out, as you are a cousin, albeit many times removed, of his. I know for a fact that the boy thinks he has no family, and up until now, as did we. However, once he meets you and Mei-sama, I have no doubt that he will cherish the both of you to the nth degree."

There was just a touch of bitterness in the old man's voice. Ao didn't know whether it was directed towards him, or internally, but he did not comment upon it. Instead, he stood, bowed, took the scroll, and left the room, planning on taking Sarutobi's advice. He would find the young Uzumaki, and perhaps get to know him, and those two intriguing comrades of his a bit better.

Sarutobi and Jiraiya watched the Mizu nin walk out of the room, fatigue clear on both of their faces.

"For some reason, I can't help but feel that we're about to start something explosive." The Sannin commented dryly.

Hiruzen stayed silent, agreeing with Jiraiya. He reached under his desk to where his secret stash of Sake was kept, and pulled out a bottle.

"Sit down my boy. I have a feeling that we're going to need this to deal with some issues from now on."

* * *

Luckily, Yoshino had not made good on her promise to paddle them with her spoon, but the verbal chewing out that all four of them had received was something the entire Nara Clan had heard.

The looks of pity that they received on the way to the dining hall grated on their nerves more than anything else. But Ayumi, the small Nara child that the trio had begun calling _Hime-sama_, settled herself down on her Lee nii-san's lap, and made the three of them recall what had happened in the stadium.

Her tear-stricken face as she hugged Naruto was something that the boy/man would not forget for a long time. It was odd to have people care so much about him, when he hadn't known them for more than a couple months.

The Matriarch of the Family had sent the genins to their room after giving them a dinner of a lifetime. She kept giving them looks of pride and anger at the same time, much to Shikaku's silent amusement. He knew that he was going to have to sleep on the couch tonight, but his wife would probably bring him back to their bed after a couple hours. She always did...

The talk of the Village though, (not that they knew that) were currently lounging about in _their_ room, playing back the day's events, seeing what all could happen because of it, and waiting for Naruto to tell them that Gaara was awake.

"So saving Gaara means that Suna will be a sure shot ally." Lee mussed up his hair in a very Naruto-like fashion.

"Stronger ties with them, in a shorter amount of time." Shikamaru affirmed. _Which means that I can have my wife sooner..._

"We've been put on the global circuit now." Naruto stated quietly, looking down at his sealing notes. "Good or bad?"

"Both." The Nara said quickly. "But good in the long term sense. Iwa...they're tough folk...literally, and it is inevitable that you will be revealed as the son of the Fourth. So they might be antagonists, but they will have to turn into our comrades."

"Do you think that Obito and Madara will move faster?" Lee asked quietly, staring at the ceiling.

His best friends tensed, and didn't answer. Truth be told, they couldn't be sure of that, as they weren't privy to Akatsuki's movements until sometime in the next few months.

"If news travels that we...well, in this case, that _I_ am much stronger than reports say I am, then they might move faster. But...I am probably the most heavily guarded host, besides Bee jii-chan." Naruto said hesitantly. "We also have Uchiha Itachi on our side."

Shikamaru sucked in a breath. "Itachi...we can't just leave him there!"

"What are we supposed to do?" Lee exclaimed. "Tell him that we're from the future, that we know what he did for this Village, and ask him to come back to the place where he is enemy number one?"

That rendered the Nara silent.

"Look," Naruto placated the both of them softly. "Uchiha Itachi is a hero. I know this, and you know this. Hell, the Elders know this. But no one else does. We could tell Shikaku-san, because let's face it, I think we need someone with whom we can share this kind of stuff with. It'll come in handy. However, right now, we need to leave him alone. If our exploits have reached an international level, then _he_ will come to _us_. He did last time. That is the best plan for now."

The other two frowned, but said nothing else.

**You're a pretty good peace maker.** Kurama murmured. **Like your father.**

Naruto preened slightly. _I'll bet you heard a lot of placation from my father when it came to mom, didn't you?_

The fox made a sound that sounded like a snort. **You have no idea...**

_Do you have any insight, Kurama? I mean..._

**No.**

_No?_ A flash of irritation rippled through Naruto. The fox brought them here, couldn't he help them? Or was he truly being selfish? He had gotten what he wanted, so now he was going to leave them alone?

**I don't know more than you do. All I can tell you is that the thing that jails my wayward sibling is awake, or he will be in the next five minutes. Only the boy's chakra is flashing. Shukaku has been suppressed pretty well.**

The annoyance that Naruto held vanished, and was replaced by interest. _Finally_.

"Guys!" He announced out loud. "Kurama said that Gaara's nearly awake! We should get going."

The two boys groaned and settled down further into the soft pillows that they were laying on. "I just want to sleep." Shikamaru mumbled. "It's been a bloody long day."

"Even if Temari-chan is there?" Le waggled his eyebrows suggestively which earned him a pillow in the gut.

"Even if she's there."

Naruto whistled. "You must be pretty tired if you don't want to see her..."

The Nara had his eyes closed when he grumbled a quick _Yup_, so he didn't see the devious expressions on the other boys' faces.

The entire Nara Clan heard the poor boy's cries for help as his two friends forcibly teleported him away.

But they were too damn lazy to do anything about it.

* * *

"Who the hell comes up with a name like _Tree-bark _for a hotel?" Naruto muttered to himself as they silently combed the halls for Gaara.

"What room are they in?" Shikamaru all but growled.

"Third floor, fifth room on the left." Lee sighed in exasperation. This was the fourth time that his friend had asked.

Indeed, as Naruto neared the room, he could feel Gaara's chakra flaring, just like Kurama had said.

Standing outside the door, they could hear people talking in hushed tones.

"You ready?" Naruto glanced at the other two.

"YOSH!" Lee rumbled.

"I wasn't given a choice." Shikamaru crossed his arms over his chest, but his eyes were alight with anticipation. Idiot...

Before Naruto could even knock to enter though, Kankuro threw the door open, and pretty much dragged the three into the room.

Temari and Kankuro were standing on either side of their youngest brother, while Baki was entranced with the bed to the point where he would look no where else.

The boy in question, was sitting on the floor, currently making shapes such as flowers and hearts and clouds out of his sand, _and enjoying it__._

Never before had Gaara looked so young...so innocent. His wide teal eyes were filled with mischief rather than hate, his expression was that of wonder instead of his perpetual scowl.

The future Kazekage turned his gaze to meet them (who were currently in a state of shock.)

_Did the seal fail and turn Gaara...mental?_ Lee thought when Gaara stood up slowly.

Not aware of the trio's slightly panicky thoughts, or the smirking faces of the Suna nin, Gaara stopped directly in front of Naruto, his expression changing from joy to..._extreme_ joy.

Naruto was frozen to the spot, not knowing what to say. But the look that Temari was giving him clearly stated _You broke him so now you fix him_.

"ONII-SAMA!" Gaara crushed Naruto's midriff in a hug so tight, that Naruto was sure his wounds were going to re-open.

Beside him, Lee and Shikamaru's jaws dropped before they started to snicker.

"NARUTO NII-SAMA! THANK YOU FOR FREEING ME FROM MY ETERNAL PRISON!" Gaara exclaimed right in Naruto's ear.

Naruto, who was not even able to glare at the people who were laughing at him, patted Gaara on the shoulder gently, squirming when the boy's sand started to do a happy jig.

"At least he doesn't want to kill anyone." The blond stated weakly, knowing that he had broken ribs by this point.

And then Gaara let him go, a huge grin on his face. Because his back was turned to everyone in the room, no one saw how a kunai was strategically placed between Naruto's legs.

However, Shikamaru and Lee did hear when Gaara muttered angrily, _"Start talking, Namikaze, or your line will end with you. As for the not killing people thing...I think you might be the last one on that list."_

That's when Naruto blanched.

Shikamaru squeaked.

And Lee snarfed.

"This is...troublesome..."

Naruto didn't have it in him to bop Lee over the head because it was true.

Time travel...was truly a bitch sometimes.

**That...that might have been my fault Naruto. See...I wasn't sure what would happen when Shukaku and I met. Be a bit more careful next time you meet one of my siblings.**

_Screw you Kurama, screw you._

* * *

_Ha! Bet you didn't see that coming! (I didn't either)_


End file.
